ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — It didn’t take long for the Denver Broncos to make a move at kicker after the team collectively went 1-for-4 in field goal attempts in their first preseason game.
On Tuesday morning, the team waived Elliott Fry with an injury designation. After the Broncos’ 15th training camp practice on Tuesday, Sean Payton said the injury was “nothing significant” and “just a pull.”
However, it doesn’t appear the Broncos will be quick to re-sign Fry once he’s healthy.
Against the Cardinals, Fry went 1-for-2, including a game-long 55-yard field goal, while Brett Maher went 0-for-2, including one of his kicks blocked by pressure coming through the middle. The Broncos decided to move forward with Maher, even though he only made a single extra point in the first preseason game.
But despite only one kicker remaining on the roster, Payton and the Broncos are hardly naming Maher the Week 1 starter.
“We’ll go day-to-day with where we’re at with the kickers,” Payton stated after Tuesday’s practice. “Brett had a good day today.”
In his first practice as the team’s lone kicker, Maher started off shaky, but finished strong. In the only pure field goal period of practice, the veteran kicker went 5-for-7, including misses from 45 and 53 yards out. However, he ended practice on a very high note.
In the final period of practice, a move-the-ball two-minute drill, Russell Wilson and the Broncos’ offense needed at least a field goal to send the situation to overtime.
With six seconds left, Wilson drove the offense to the defense’s 41-yard line. This set up a pressure situation of Maher. Hit a 59 yarder and tie the game. Miss it and the offense fails.
Maher nailed the kick.
Then, Jarrett Stidham and the second team were up. Maher nailed that kick too, this one also from over 50 yards out. The strong end to the day left Payton impressed. But, once again, it wasn’t enough for Maher to be named the team’s Week 1 starter.
When talking about the Broncos’ kicking job, Payton said, “That doesn’t discount us, possibly, if we wanted to bring in another player.”
“I’ve said this to you guys before… He’s competing with himself because he’s got 31 other teams — Now there’s probably seven teams that have a real kicking battle,” Payton added. “So, he’s competing with those guys that come out of those clubs.”
In two weeks, on Aug. 29, every NFL team has to cut their roster from 90 players to 53, which will put at least a few new kickers on the open market. Over the next two weeks, in practice and in the preseason games, Maher will have to prove to the Broncos that he is the better option than the rest of the free agent kickers.
“He’s hitting it well,” Payton said. “He’s got good leg talent.”
Leg talent has never been an issue for Maher. In three of his four seasons in the NFL, the 33-yard old has hit at least one 60-yard kick per season. Last year, with the Cowboys, Maher went 9-for-11 from 50-plus yards. But Maher lost his job in Dallas when the playoffs came around as he went 1-for-6 on extra points in Dallas’ two games.
Now, the pressure remains on Maher to prove he’s deserving to be Denver’s kicker come Week 1.
