The Los Angeles Rams announced that they have released rookie kicker Samuel Sloman after the Week 7 win over the Chicago Bears.
Despite the win, Sloman had another rough week after missing a 48-yard field goal attempt in the fourth quarter after kicking the ball low and into the line.
The kicker position became a problem for the Rams when they allowed Greg Zuerlein to walk in free agency this past offseason. They drafted Sloman in the seventh round and he won the job in training camp over the CFL’s Lirim Hajrullahu and XFL’s Austin MacGinnis.
Sloman’s NFL career hasn’t gotten off to the best start though as he is 8-for-11 on field goals and 18-for-21 on extra points in seven games.
He was essentially put on notice last week when the Rams signed veteran kicker Kai Forbath. He wasn’t ready to go against the Bears due to coronavirus (COVID-19) restrictions though, so Sloman essentially got one last chance to prove he was the right man for the job.
Not only did he miss a field goal against the Bears, but Sloman also failed to kick the ball out of the end zone on all of his kickoff attempts like McVay had hoped he would considering Chicago has a dangerous returner in Cordarrelle Patterson.
With Sloman no longer in the mix, the Rams’ kicking job now belongs to Forbath. In four games last season with the Dallas Cowboys and New England Patriots, Forbath went 11-for-11 on field goals and 11-for-12 on extra points. He has made 86.8 percent of his field goals in his eight-year NFL career.
L.A. could sign Sloman back to their practice squad if they want, but the hope is that Forbath will be able to stabilize the kicking position moving forward and that won’t be necessary.
It also appears they will be going back to MacGinnis for that practice squad spot, per Mike Garafolo of NFL Network:
The #Rams are signing K Austin MacGinnis to their practice squad. He was with them in camp. Back now, as they want to carry two kickers, like many teams are doing right now. Sam Sloman was waived earlier today.
— Mike Garafolo (@MikeGarafolo) October 27, 2020
If Forbath is able to have success then the MacGinnis move shouldn’t matter a whole lot, but he does provide some insurance in the event Forbath fails.
