Cardinals' Chad Ryland: Makes four kicks in place of Prater
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Ryland connected on three of four field-goal attempts and his only point-after try during Sunday's 24-23 win at San Francisco.
Ryland was elevated from the Cardinals' practice squad Saturday to fill in for the injured Matt Prater (left knee) in Week 5, and the former fared well aside from having a 45-yard FGA blocked and returned for a touchdown in the second quarter. On Monday, Ryland reverted to the practice squad, per the NFL's transaction log, after which coach Jonathan Gannon told Josh Weinfuss of ESPN.com that the team was taking a wait-and-see approach with Prater. Such comments indicate Ryland may be called upon for place-kicking duties again for Sunday's game in Green Bay if Prater doesn't make enough progress in his recovery.
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Cardinals' Chad Ryland: Set for kicking duties
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Ryland will be the Cardinals' kicker against the 49ers on Sunday, Darren Urban of the team's official site reports.
Ryland was elevated from the practice squad Saturday due to Matt Prater's (knee) availability being in question for Week 5. With Prater ultimately being inactive, the Maryland product will get the opportunity to handle kicking duties. Ryland was selected in the fourth round of the 2023 NFL Draft by the Patriots but ultimately struggled in his rookie campaign, making just 64 percent of his FGAs before getting cut by New England in August.
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Cardinals' Chad Ryland: Elevated ahead of Week 5
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The Cardinals elevated Ryland from the practice squad to the active roster Saturday, Adam Schefter of ESPN reports.
Ryland was signed to the Cardinals' practice squad Tuesday to provide insurance in case Matt Prater (knee) is unable to play Sunday against the 49ers. Prater was able to practice Friday as a limited participant, but if his knee injury prevents him from suiting up Sunday, Ryland will serve as the Cardinals' kicker. Ryland went 16-for-25 on field-goal attempts and connected on 24 of 25 extra-point tries with the Patriots in 2023.
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Chad Ryland: Joins Cardinals' practice squad
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The Cardinals signed Ryland to their practice squad Wednesday.
The 2023 fourth-round pick spent his rookie campaign with the Patriots before being waived in late August. Ryland converted on just 16 of his 25 field-goal attempts but missed only one of his 25 point-after tries in 2023. He could be elevated to Arizona's active roster if Matt Prater deals with injury at any point this season.
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Patriots' Chad Ryland: Set to compete with veteran kicker
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Ryland is slated to face competition from veteran kicker Joey Slye, who is in line to sign with the Patriots, Mark Daniels of masslive.com reports.
A fourth-round pick of the Patriots in the 2023 NFL Draft, Ryland is coming off a rookie campaign in which he made just 64 percent of his field-goal attempts (16 of 25). Though the Maryland product has a strong kicking leg, he'll need to display better accuracy in the coming months in order to hold off the challenge presented by the 28-year-old Slye, who connected on 79.2 percent of his field-goal tries with the Commanders last season.
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Patriots' Chad Ryland: Misses another kick Sunday
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Ryland converted one of his two field-goal attempts and both of his extra-point tries in Sunday's 27-17 loss versus the Chiefs.
Ryland has now missed three of his last six field-goal tries, and the 41-yarder he hooked to the left in Week 15 was not particularly close. The rookie's struggles thus far combined with the Patriots' offense's lack of juice make him a less-than-appealing option at kicker for the rest of the fantasy playoffs.
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Patriots' Chad Ryland: Three points Thursday
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Ryland made all three of his extra-point tries in Thursday's 21-18 win over the Steelers.
For the second game in a row, Ryland didn't record any field-goal attempts; however, this time around the Patriots offense showed signs of life (after being shut out Week 13), which resulted in the kicker's only opportunities Thursday arriving on extra points. Ryland is still not a high-percentage fantasy option ahead of New England's Dec. 17 contest against the Chiefs, but the 2023 fourth-rounder has at least maintained his weekly role despite his accuracy issues (12 of 18 on FG tries) through 13 games this season.
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Patriots' Chad Ryland: Posts 11 points in Week 7
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Ryland made all three of his field-goal attempts in Sunday's 29-25 win over the Bills en route to recording a season-high 11 points.
Ryland now has 33 points over his first seven games as a pro, and his fantasy upside going forward hinges on how the Patriots' offense (which has been inconsistent this season) moves the ball in the coming weeks. Next up for the team is a Week 8 divisional matchup against the Dolphins.
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Patriots' Chad Ryland: Makes lone FG attempt Sunday
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Ryland made his only field-goal attempt (from 43 yards) in Sunday's 21-17 loss to the Raiders.
Ryland also made both of his extra-point tries Sunday, and through six contests to date, the rookie kicker has compiled a total of 22 points. Until the 1-5 Patriots pick up the pace on offense, Ryland will profile as a low-end fantasy option.
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Patriots' Chad Ryland: Misses lone attempt Sunday
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Ryland missed his only field-goal attempt in Sunday's 34-0 loss to the Saints.
Following his miss from 48-yards Sunday, Ryland is now 4-of-8 on field-goal attempts through his first five NFL games. Though the 2023 fourth-rounder isn't in danger of losing his job as the Patriots kicker, he'll profile as a low-percentage fantasy option until both his accuracy and the team's offense show signs of improvement.
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Patriots' Chad Ryland: Five points in Week 2
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Ryland made his only field-goal attempt (from 49 yards) in Sunday's 24-17 loss to the Dolphins.
Ryland also made both of his extra-point tries Sunday and now has a total of seven points through his first two games as a pro. As the season progresses there will be weeks where the 2023 fourth-rounder has more scoring opportunities, but for now Ryland is a speculative fantasy option.
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Patriots' Chad Ryland: Two points in opener
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Ryland made both of his extra-point tries in Sunday's season-opening 25-20 loss to the Eagles.
With Nick Folk having been traded to the Titans at the end of August, Ryland is entrenched as the Patriots' kicker this season and will thus have plenty of weeks where he'll be called upon more. The 2023 fourth-rounder's next chance to log a field-goal attempt will arrive this coming weekend when the Patriots host the Dolphins.
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Patriots' Chad Ryland: Competing with Nick Folk
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Ryland connected on an extra-point try in Friday's 23-7 preseason loss to the Titans.
As Tuesday's roster cut-downs approach, Ryland and veteran Nick Folk are still in the Patriots' kicker mix and remain in what coach Bill Belichick noted Friday was a "pretty tight competition," Mark Daniels of masslive.com reports. Given that the Patriots selected Ryland in the fourth round of the 2023 NFL Draft, it would be surprising to see him let go, but with both kickers having had "really good camps," per Belichick, the team has a tough decision to make at the position, with Daniels suggesting that both players making the initial cut is a possible outcome.