On Monday, the New Orleans Saints received some very bad injury news. The training staff announced that it would be evaluating kicker Will Lutz in order to determine if he needs any core muscle surgery. He will be absent for a significant amount of time in the morning, as he has been battling various ailments.
“Unfortunately, I found out that my training camp will be cut short due to an injury that had progressively worsened,” Lutz wrote in a note that he posted on Twitter. We’ve spoken with our medical team, training staff, and a second opinion from an expert to determine that it is in our best interests to fix this as soon as possible to avoid missing as much time as possible. We appreciate your prayers and thoughts.
“I love football so sitting will not be an option. But I am looking forward to getting back stronger and healthier to help this team win!” WHODAT!
The Saints had a huge hole to fill and they quickly went after another kicker. According to ESPN’s Mike Triplett, New Orleans plans to sign former Dallas Cowboys kicker Brett Maher after he worked out for New Orleans on Monday.
Maher, 31 years old, was a Cowboys rookie during the 2018-2019 seasons. He made 80.6 percent of his field goal attempts in his first season in Dallas. In December 2018, he also made an impressive leg with a 62-yarder. He became the first player to score three field goals within 60+ yards.
Maher’s 2019 campaign was a struggle with accuracy. Kai Forbath replaced Maher later in the season, making only 20 of his 30 field goals. At the end of the season, he left the Cowboys and spent the rest of the year on the practice squads for the New York Jets and Washington Football Team.
Maher was an undrafted, free agent from Nebraska in 2013. After his rookie season, he was signed by the Cowboys and Jets before moving to the Canadian Football League where he remained for a while. After his rookie season, he returned to the NFL with the Cleveland Browns in 2017, before achieving his breakthrough the next year.
Maher is now able to showcase his talents on a large stage, even though Lutz will be out of action for at least a few more weeks. His spot will not be guaranteed once Lutz returns to the Saints, but he could attract interest from the rest of the league if his performance is good.