Jaguars practice squad: Revolving door at kicker, other takeaways

Jacksonville Jaguars defensive tackle Jay Tufele (97) at the Episcopal School of Jacksonville Knight Campus practice fields on Atlantic Blvd. [Bob Self/Florida Times-Union]Tufele
Jacksonville Jaguars defensive tackle Jay Tufele (97) at the Episcopal School of Jacksonville Knight Campus practice fields on Atlantic Blvd. [Bob Self/Florida Times-Union]Tufele /
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Aug 12, 2022; Detroit, Michigan, USA; Detroit Lions kicker Riley Patterson (6). Mandatory Credit: Lon Horwedel-USA TODAY Sports /

3. The Jaguars kicking carousel continues ahead of Week 1

In some cases, the third time is the charm but when it comes to getting the kicker position right, the Jaguars are already in their sixth try this year. Matthew Wright did a solid job for them last season but he didn’t figure to be part of their plans for the 2022 season. The Jags then signed Ryan Santoso and Andrew Mevis. Neither of them was the answer, so they also were given their walking papers.

The Jags next brought in James McCourt and Jake Verity and the two of them made the initial 53-man roster but both of them lasted just one day on the team (see observation No. 4). This could look like a curious decision at first but then you realize that they made a claim on former Detroit Lions kicker Riley Patterson, who is now a Jaguar.

Patterson was entangled with veteran Austin Seibert in a battle for the kicker job with the Lions. The former ended up seizing the job and the latter was waived. After going undrafted last year, Patterson signed with the Minnesota Vikings and later spend time with the New England Patriots before joining the Lions. The former Memphis Tiger appeared in seven games in 2021 and made 13 of his 14 field-goal attempts and all his 16 extra points.

The Jaguars were surely high on Patterson. Otherwise, they wouldn’t have claimed him off waivers nor moved on from either McCourt or Verity. Having said that, it’s hard to tell whether the carousel will finally stop or the team’s brass will keep tweaking the position.