The Los Angeles Rams made a difficult call at kicker midway through last season.
Less than a year has passed, and the player they moved on from is getting a shot to work his way back onto an NFL roster.
Former Rams kicker Joshua Karty is working out for the New York Jets on Wednesday, according to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport.
“Free agent kicker Joshua Karty, who has kicked the last two seasons for the #Rams, is working out for the #Jets today,” Rapoport wrote on X.
The Jets claimed Blake Grupe off waivers from the Indianapolis Colts on Aug. 31 and released Jason Sanders, per the Jets’ official website. Grupe made all 11 of his field-goal attempts over five games with Indianapolis last season.
Karty’s workout also provides a reminder of how rapidly the Rams’ kicking situation changed in 2025, when a promising young specialist lost his job and Harrison Mevis seized the opening.
Karty Went From Rams Record-Setter to Free Agent
Karty arrived in Los Angeles as a sixth-round pick in the 2024 NFL draft and gave the Rams much reason to believe they had found a long-term answer.
He converted 29 of 34 field-goal attempts as a rookie, including six of seven from at least 50 yards, while scoring 119 points. That total broke the franchise record for points by a rookie kicker, while his 29 made field goals tied Frank Corral’s rookie mark.
His second season unfolded much differently.
Karty made 10 of 15 field-goal attempts through eight games in 2025, a 66.7% rate, and converted 23 of 26 extra points. The Rams eventually brought in Mevis, who took over kicking duties before Los Angeles waived Karty on Nov. 28.
Sean McVay said at the time that the decision was “exclusively a numbers thing” after Mevis had established himself in the job. Los Angeles initially brought Karty back on its practice squad before the Arizona Cardinals signed him to their active roster in December.
Arizona retained Karty in the spring, but his stay ended in June when the Cardinals released him and committed to Chad Ryland. Cardinals special teams coordinator Michael Ghobrial still called Karty “truly a starting kicker in this league” following the move.
Mevis Has Given Rams Stability at Kicker
While Karty searches for his next stop, the player who replaced him is firmly in place for Los Angeles.
Mevis converted 12 of 13 field goals during nine regular-season appearances last year, good for a 92.3% success rate, while going a perfect 39-for-39 on extra points. He followed that by making all six of his postseason field-goal attempts and all nine PATs, including a game-winning kick in the divisional round at Chicago.
The Rams listed Mevis as their lone kicker on the initial 53-man roster for 2026 and described the former Missouri standout as “entrenched” in the position.
That gives Los Angeles more certainty than it had at this point a year ago.
Karty’s rookie season suggested the Rams had solved their kicker search through the draft. But his sudden downturn forced them in another direction, and Mevis turned the change into a lasting occasion.
Now Karty could get another one of his own in New York.
Former LA Rams Record-Setter Gets Jets Workout Ahead of Week 1