Brett Maher was waived by the Cowboys near the end of a previous season, but that move will not be repeated anytime soon. Coach of the Cowboys’ special teams John Fassel has stated that the team will not be changing its kicker.
Cowboys To Sign Tristan Vizcaino, Plan To Keep Brett Maher
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After being released by the Cowboys late in the 2019 season, Maher was re-signed by the NFC East club late in the offseason following an uninspiring kicking competition. The former CFL kicker, who holds the NFL record for most 60-plus-yard makes in a career (four), made 90.6% of his field goals this year, a new personal best. He’s about to embark on a trip to San Francisco, fresh off the worst game of his professional career.
From ESPN.com’s Todd Archer: “I believe in the hot hand, and I believe in the yips, absolutely,” said Fassel. “And you know, you wonder sometimes how you get into the yips, and you wonder sometimes how you get back into the hot hand. I think it’s keep stepping up to the line and shooting that thing. We missed a couple of free throws [Monday] … He had a hot hand. Let’s face it, he only missed [six] kicks all season. The yips happen, so I expect a hot hand coming up.”
After Maher’s disastrous PAT attempt, Mike McCarthy also declined a late field goal attempt. During the Cowboys’ lopsided victory over the Buccaneers, Maher, 33, kicked his final extra point.
Maher will face intense scrutiny before the Cowboys’ divisional-round game, but his season has been good enough to earn him another shot. Furthermore, in 2015 kickers were allowed to attempt field goals from the 15-yard line. While Maher may never recover from his wild-card era PAT attempt, they were much easier in days gone by.
Per a tweet from NFL.com’s Tom Pelissero, the Cowboys have signed Tristan Vizcaino to their practice squad. This season, Vizcaino kicked three field goals for the Cardinals and the Patriots.
With New England and Arizona this season, Vizcaino was perfect on both field goals and extra points. He also spent time with Dallas in the offseason of 2020. The ex-Charger kicked 11 of 12 field goals and 15 of 20 extra points for his career.
