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Everybody knows the NFL is a business, but nobody claimed it was fair.
Now-former Dallas Cowboys kicker Brett Maher can attest to the sport’s dog-eat-dog nature. Maher was released from the team Monday much to fan jubilation.
But here’s the real kicker (pun intended): He was cut upon stepping foot into the Cowboys’ facility, moments after spending time at a local children’s hospital as part of a community service initiative.
Seriously.
Dirty business. Brett Maher went to the hospital visits today spent time with some sick kids. Got on the bus with some teammates and after arriving at The Star he was cut.
The final nail in Maher’s coffin came in last week’s loss to the Chicago Bears, when he missed a 42-yard field goal attempt — his tenth miss of 2019, more than any NFL kicker in a single season within the past four years, according to NFL Research.
And the cherry atop his manure sundae was placed Wednesday by head coach Jason Garrett.
“We just felt like we needed to make a change at kicker,” Garrett told reporters, per The Athletic. “We simply missed too many makable kicks.”
Maher had survived an initial round of free-agent tryouts, when Dallas hosted Nick Rose, Tristan Vizcaino, and Austin MacGinnis. But he couldn’t outlast the second group of workouts, which included former Patriots K Kai Forbath, who was awarded the job.
Maher passed through waivers unclaimed and is free to sign immediately with any team. Considering his disastrous season and the way he was pink-slipped by Dallas, however, his confidence has to be at an all-time low. It shouldn’t surprise if the 30-year-old is out of football until 2020.
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Forbath Talks Cowboys Gig
Forbath was a new addition to both the workout pool and the open market. An eighth-year veteran, he recently appeared in one game for the snakebitten Patriots, replacing Nick Folk, who replaced Mike Nugent, who replaced starter Stephen Gostkowski.
In Week 13, his Patriots debut, Forbath hit a 23-yard field goal but went 1-for-2 on extra points. He was waived the following day. That singular effort, though, was enough to shake the rust as he settles into his North Texas digs.
“I definitely feel more comfortable coming in here after getting that one game in,” Forbath said Monday, via ESPN’s Todd Archer. “Just scoring points. That’s what I’ve done for seven years now so I’m just here to be consistent and make kicks when they need me to.”
Forbath, 32, owns a career 85.8 percent field goal percentage, having drilled 121 of 141 attempts and 173 of 185 extra points across stints with the Patriots, Washington Redskins, New Orleans Saints, Minnesota Vikings, and Jacksonville Jaguars.
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Brett Maher Cut From Cowboys Right After Visiting Children’s Hospital [LOOK]