According to Daniel Flick of Sports Illustrated on Tuesday, the Los Angeles Rams have made a change at kicker a week before the National Football League postseason is set to begin. The Rams have decided to sign Brett Maher of Kearney, Nebraska and release rookie Lucas Havrisik of Riverside, California.
In 2023, Havrisik made of 15 of 20 field goal attempts, and 19 of 22 converts. Two of the missed converts came in the one point Rams win over the New York Giants on Sunday. With the victory, the Rams clinched a postseason berth.
The bottom line is that Rams head coach Sean McVay was looking for a kicker that had experience and has shown consistency in his career. Those were characteristics that Maher had over Havrisik. The fact that the Rams had made the NFL playoffs made it even more important for McVay to make a change.
Ironically, this is the second time this season that Maher has kicked for the Rams. He was previously with them in the first seven weeks of this season. Maher made 17 of 23 field goals and 12 of 13 converts before being cut. One area where Maher struggled was kickoffs. He had two kickoffs for the Rams this season for only 58 yards.
Prior to kicking for the Rams in 2023, Maher was with the Dallas Cowboys in 2018, 2019, and 2022. He was also with the New Orleans Saints in 2021. In 61 games, Maher has made 111 of 139 field goals, and 140 of 147 converts. In addition to his NFL experience, Maher spent four seasons in the Canadian Football League. He kicked with the Ottawa Redblacks in 2014, 2015 and 2017, and the Hamilton Tiger-Cats in 2016.
