In Ryland’s defense, he could be psychologically affected by the team’s laborious losing streak. Maybe Ryland wants to make meaningful kicks: extra points after epic, game-winning touchdowns, instead of just being a last resort after offensive coordinator Drew Petzing’s drive fails. The Cardinals have lacked competitiveness this season and Ryland’s botched kicks only hint at a larger narrative, not a basic denial of his innate ability. NFL kickers move around quite frequently and the Cardinals haven’t released Ryland, so it seems strange that the franchise would tiptoe around bringing in Karty with just two games left in the regular season.
Advertisement
Karty is 10-for-15 from the field this season, and if the Cardinals plan to bench Ryland anytime soon, the onus will be on Karty to be perfect in his place. Head coach Jonathan Gannon hasn’t confirmed a kicker change, but the Karty news seems a bit hollow considering the next task at hand against the Cincinnati Bengals. Needless to say, the way the Bengals offense has been playing, the Cardinals will need more than three points per possession to get a win in Week 17.
Get more Cardinals and NFL coverage from Cards Wire’s Jess Root and others by listening to the latest on the Rise Up, See Red podcast. Subscribe to the podcasts on Spotify, YouTube, or Apple.
This article originally appeared on Cards Wire: Cardinals May Target K Chad Ryland, But It Won’t Hurt His Career