The Las Vegas Raiders appear to be moving on from one of the last remaining holdovers from their days in Oakland.
Kicker Matt Gay agreed to terms on a free-agent deal Monday night, likely signaling a lack of intention to re-sign free agent kicker Daniel Carlson.
Vegas Nation Podcast
Gay struggled last season, making just 17 of 23 field-goal attempts in stints with the San Francisco 49ers and Washington Commanders. He has not made better than 84 percent of his attempts in a single season since 2022.
Matt Gay grade: D-
This may be the first true misstep of an otherwise great day for the Raiders front office.
It just doesn’t make sense, unless the Raiders plan on using Gay as a placeholder for now and bringing in a rookie as competition.
But there would also be little reason to sign Gay on the first day of free agency at that point.
The 31-year-old made a Pro Bowl in 2021 and has a Super Bowl ring, but has battled inconsistency throughout his career.
Not only do Gay’s numbers compare unfavorably with Carlson, but also Carlson has been a popular presence in the locker room and has an extremely close relationship with All-Pro punter AJ Cole.
It’s one of those moves that appears to be relatively high risk, low reward for general manager John Spytek. The signing could end up putting the Raiders on the dreaded wheel of revolving kickers that several teams in the NFL endure each season.
Contact Adam Hill at ahill@reviewjournal.com. Follow @AdamHillLVRJ on X.
