Things got really ugly Monday night Cowboys Raymond James Stadium almost ran out of kickballs. This is because the first two ended up in the stands afterwards Brett Maher He missed badly on consecutive extra point attempts.
If the Cowboys lose one-third, they will have to use one of their own Tampa Bay Buccaneers Kicking balls.
“It’s kind of the perfect storm for a bad kicking day,” said John Vassell, Dallas special teams coordinator.
Vasil was training the special forces units in the NFL Since 2005. He has never been with a team that had to resort to a third kick. He also never experienced a player miss four consecutive extra point attempts.
Fasil believed Maher was going through a flair, a term often used in sports to describe a sudden and unexplained loss of a skill. It has happened with former players, specifically Sebastian Janikowski and Greg Zurlin.
“I believe in a hot hand and I believe in points,” said Fasil. “Not at all. You sometimes wonder how you get the yips, sometimes you wonder how you get back on the hot hand. And I think he gets up to the goal line and shoots. (Maher) missed two free throws (Monday night).
“I don’t know what it is, but I believe in dots and I believe in a hot hand. He had a hot hand. Let’s face it. … And then the dots spoke. So, I expect a hot hand to arrive.”
Maher scored 50 of his 53 extra points during the season. He was 29 of 32 on his field goal attempts, which included making 9 of 11 from 50 yards. For his career, Maher is 128 out of 134 in extra points attempts.
But Monday night was worrying. In his third career playoff game, Maher missed his first four extra points before finally reaching the fifth. Fortunately for him and the Cowboys, the game wasn’t close enough for a few points to make the difference. Dallas advanced to the Division B round A convincing 31-14 wild card win above pirates.
“I definitely didn’t do my part (Monday night),” Maher said. “This team is too good to get going for me not to, so come back to it this week.”
The Cowboys plan on staying afloat on their kicker Sunday in San Francisco.
“Hell, yeah,” said Terminator. “If you ask me, sure.”
Cowboys owner and general manager Jerry Jones said Tuesday morning that they will “take a look” at the kicker’s situation. He also said that Maher’s kick would likely affect Dallas more than twice after a touchdown.
“It would really be a huge setback to go through the rest of this tournament, the rest of this playoff run, with a shake in the kicker,” Jones said during his weekly radio appearance on 105.3 The Fan in Dallas.
Cowboys coach Mike McCarthy said after the game that the plan was to stick with Maher.
“We’ll move on,” McCarthy said Tuesday. “As of now, that’s the plan.”
“At the end of the day, we all have work to do,” McCarthy added. “He knows he has to get the ball up the posts. He’s been very productive and consistent for us. It’s like anything, we all work together every day and that’s what I believe in and I believe in him and his way.
“I think a lot in this business, and especially this game, you learn more from your experiences when it doesn’t go the way you want it to than when it works. So it’s just like the whole football team. We came out of Washington and got punched in the jaw and I think we clearly responded. I think he’s got that In it for sure.”
Brett Maher missed three extra points all season before losing four to Tampa Bay. (Kim Clement / USA Today)
Maher, 33, has bounced around the NFL over the past decade. This is his third time with the Cowboys. He signed with Dallas as an undrafted free agent in 2013 but was released before the season began. After spending the next four years in the Canadian Football League, Maher was the starting quarterback for the Cowboys through the 2018 and 2019 seasons. Accuracy issues led to Dallas releasing him near the end of the 2019 season. Over the next two years, Maher kicked for PlanesAnd WashingtonAnd TexasAnd basics And saints. He returned to the Cowboys in August during training camp after rookie Jonathan Garibay was released by Dallas. Then Maher beat Larim Hajrallah for the job.
“I spoke to Brett[Tuesday morning],” Fasel said. “We had a great conversation about (Monday night) because I think the biggest thing for us is not to pretend like it didn’t happen and to kind of move on. We approached it from a ‘what happened’ perspective, both mentally and physically. We talked about our plan this week. So, we’ll We switch to a normal plan.
“He was just as distraught as I am. I share in all the players’ agony. So, as it should be as a competitor. He knows it was just a bad day at the office. I have full confidence he’s going to bounce back. Yeah, it’s a psychological part for sure. I don’t think there’s anything physical.” .The first two, if you ask him, he was a bit lazy at the end on the first and kind of fingering the second. Then he kind of corrected the mistake on the third. And then the fourth is just kind of mental operation.”
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After Maher’s third foul, ESPN’s television coverage showed clearly Cowboys QB frustration Duck Prescott He slams his helmet on the sideline and says “Go for a f——two!”
Prescott said he spoke with Maher after the game about his emotional reaction.
“I’m a huge fan of ‘Money’ Maher,” Prescott said. “Obviously (she showed me) a video of me, it’s just feelings, and that’s part of it. I spoke to him one-on-one, and just told him after the game to drop that, we’re going to need him. I just played like s – a week ago, I mean, it happens. But when you believe in each other, you believe in what we can do and knowing what this guy has done, with the resilience he’s shown throughout his career personally, I have no doubt he’ll come back next week and be perfect and help us win.”
Prescott wasn’t alone. Many teammates and coaches shared their support after the match.
“I feel very fortunate to have my teammates, the dressing room and the coaching staff,” said Maher. “It definitely lifted me up. I appreciate each and every one of them. It’s time for me to do my part.”
Fassel pointed out that where the Cowboys will be playing on Sunday isn’t exactly the most suitable environment for kicking. Levi’s is an outdoor field with a grass field and wind can be a factor. 49ers kicker Ruby Gold 30 of 31 extra points kicked there this season. Maher did not play in Levi’s stadium.
“Go back to it,” Maher said of his operation this week. “Hit some balls, have a great week of training, and get ready to go.”
(Top photo by Brett Maher: Julio Aguilar / Getty Images)
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