Who Should I Start? Matt Prater or Matt Gay

Friday, January 3, 12:10 PM

Arizona Cardinals head coach Jonathan Gannon said that veteran kicker Matt Prater (knee) "will not go" in the Week 18 regular-season finale on Sunday against the division-rival San Francisco 49ers. Prater suffered a meniscus injury in his knee earlier this year and missed the last three months as a result. The 40-year-old kicker only ended up playing in four games in 2024 before injuring his knee in his fourth year with Arizona and 18th year in the NFL. In the four games he was active, Prater made all six of his field-goal attempts (one from 50-plus yards) and was successful on all 10 of his extra-point tries as well. Prater will be a free agent heading into his age-41 season in 2025. Chad Ryland will close out the year this weekend as Arizona's kicker. He's bounced back from a tough rookie season with the Pats to go 26-for-30 on field goals and 21-for-22 on extra points in his 12 games with the Cardinals.

Tuesday, April 29, 1:08 PM

Veteran free-agent kicker Matt Gay signed a one-year deal worth over $4.25 million fully guaranteed with the Washington Commanders on Tuesday, according to his agents. It's the most fully guaranteed money for a kicker on a one-year deal in NFL history. Gay can earn up to $5 million with reachable incentives in 2025 in D.C. In a corresponding move, the Commanders are releasing kicker Zane Gonzalez. In a Commanders offense that ranked fifth in the NFL in points per game (28.5), Gay should immediately be in play as a lower-end fantasy kicking option for the 2025 season. The 31-year-old booter went 31-for-37 (83.8%) on his field-goal tries in 16 games with the Indianapolis Colts last year, but he made just three of nine attempts from 50-plus yards out. He was a perfect 33-for-33 on extra points and has made 85.5% of his 193 career field-goal attempts in six years in the NFL.