The Cowboys are switching kickers. Brett Maher is gone, and Kai Forbath is in. I don’t know if this is an upgrade.
The Patriots, after all, released Forbath after one game.
Forbath hasn’t been good on extra points. He’s missed 9 of them in the last four years. Maher, meanwhile, has converted all but one of his 69 PATs since showing up in Dallas.
There have been 35 kickers who’ve attempted at least 50 extra points since 2016. Of that group, Forbath ranks last in accuracy, while Maher has been the most accurate kicker in the league short of Justin Tucker.
| EXTRA POINTS SINCE 2016 | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Player | XP | XPA | Pct |
| Justin Tucker | 149 | 151 | 98.7% |
| Brett Maher | 68 | 69 | 98.6% |
| Brandon McManus | 115 | 117 | 98.3% |
| Greg Zuerlein | 135 | 138 | 97.8% |
| Matt Bryant | 138 | 142 | 97.2% |
| Matt Prater | 130 | 134 | 97.0% |
| Wil Lutz | 181 | 187 | 96.8% |
| Jason Sanders | 54 | 56 | 96.4% |
| Daniel Carlson | 54 | 56 | 96.4% |
| Dan Bailey | 137 | 143 | 95.8% |
| Harrison Butker | 132 | 138 | 95.7% |
| Cairo Santos | 84 | 88 | 95.5% |
| Mason Crosby | 146 | 153 | 95.4% |
| Chris Boswell | 141 | 148 | 95.3% |
| Randy Bullock | 98 | 103 | 95.1% |
| Phil Dawson | 71 | 75 | 94.7% |
| Sebastian Janikowski | 85 | 90 | 94.4% |
| Robbie Gould | 109 | 116 | 94.0% |
| Dustin Hopkins | 91 | 97 | 93.8% |
| Stephen Gostkowski | 151 | 161 | 93.8% |
| Ryan Succop | 119 | 127 | 93.7% |
| Jake Elliott | 95 | 102 | 93.1% |
| Josh Lambo | 97 | 105 | 92.4% |
| Stephen Hauschka | 109 | 118 | 92.4% |
| Adam Vinatieri | 132 | 143 | 92.3% |
| Cody Parkey | 93 | 101 | 92.1% |
| Chandler Catanzaro | 102 | 111 | 91.9% |
| Zane Gonzalez | 56 | 61 | 91.8% |
| Graham Gano | 95 | 104 | 91.3% |
| Aldrick Rosas | 73 | 80 | 91.3% |
| Ka'imi Fairbairn | 104 | 114 | 91.2% |
| Blair Walsh | 52 | 57 | 91.2% |
| Jason Myers | 107 | 118 | 90.7% |
| Mike Nugent | 57 | 67 | 85.1% |
| Kai Forbath | 49 | 58 | 84.5% |
If we instead look at field goals, they kind of flip. There have been 32 who’ve attempted at least 50 field goals in the last four years. Forbath is one of five who’ve conveted at least 88 percent. Maher ranks last. He’s been particularly bad this year, converting only 20 of 30.
| FIELD GOALS SINCE 2016 | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Player | FGM | FGA | Pct |
| Justin Tucker | 130 | 139 | 93.5% |
| Josh Lambo | 90 | 100 | 90.0% |
| Robbie Gould | 98 | 109 | 89.9% |
| Harrison Butker | 90 | 101 | 89.1% |
| Kai Forbath | 52 | 59 | 88.1% |
| Stephen Gostkowski | 98 | 112 | 87.5% |
| Matt Bryant | 97 | 111 | 87.4% |
| Wil Lutz | 116 | 133 | 87.2% |
| Graham Gano | 73 | 84 | 86.9% |
| Greg Zuerlein | 106 | 122 | 86.9% |
| Jake Elliott | 69 | 80 | 86.3% |
| Randy Bullock | 66 | 77 | 85.7% |
| Chris Boswell | 95 | 111 | 85.6% |
| Matt Prater | 111 | 130 | 85.4% |
| Mason Crosby | 87 | 103 | 84.5% |
| Stephen Hauschka | 102 | 122 | 83.6% |
| Aldrick Rosas | 60 | 72 | 83.3% |
| Dustin Hopkins | 94 | 113 | 83.2% |
| Ryan Succop | 84 | 101 | 83.2% |
| Ka'imi Fairbairn | 73 | 88 | 83.0% |
| Jason Myers | 91 | 110 | 82.7% |
| Cody Parkey | 67 | 81 | 82.7% |
| Sebastian Janikowski | 51 | 62 | 82.3% |
| Adam Vinatieri | 96 | 117 | 82.1% |
| Brandon McManus | 96 | 118 | 81.4% |
| Dan Bailey | 81 | 100 | 81.0% |
| Mike Nugent | 45 | 56 | 80.4% |
| Phil Dawson | 55 | 69 | 79.7% |
| Zane Gonzalez | 51 | 64 | 79.7% |
| Chandler Catanzaro | 62 | 78 | 79.5% |
| Cairo Santos | 53 | 67 | 79.1% |
| Brett Maher | 49 | 66 | 74.2% |
If you want to look at power, there’s no comparison. Maher hit 62- and 63-yard field goals in October. Forbath can’t kick the ball that far. (How did we get to the point where a kicker is getting released less than two months after becoming the first to kick two 60-plus field goals in the same season?)
Forbath has been in and out of the league for most of the last eight years. In 78 games, he’s converted 11 of 18 field goals from 50-plus. Maher has 29 games on his odometer (about a third as many) and has conveted 10 of 15 from 50-plus.
That leg strength will get the attention of other teams.
I would not want to use Forbath as my kicker in the remaining weeks of this season.
—Ian Allan