49ers Have Found Eddy Pineiro's Temporary Replacement

The 49ers are signing former Washington Commanders kicker Matt Gay. This is a hilarious signing because the Commanders cut him to sign former 49ers kicker Jake Moody.

However, that also means the Commanders believe Moody is better than Gay. The numbers this season prove it, too. Gay has converted on roughly 68 percent of his kicks this season on 19 attempts, a career low for him.

Meanwhile, Moody is converting on 75 percent of kicks this season on 12 attempts. This is likely not going to pan out well for the 49ers. Gay seems like a lock to miss at least one field goal attempt against the Panthers.

Unless a change of scenery revitalizes him. That's all it takes for a kicker to get back into a groove. Even Moody kicked really well in his lone game with the Chicago Bears.

The flip side to that is: can anyone trust the 49ers' judgment with kickers? It's a tough call. They hit the nail on the head with Pineiro, so maybe they do.

In any case, the 49ers need to avoid settling for field goals against the Panthers. Their offense is primed to put up touchdowns against them.

That is the only way to mitigate the pressure on Gay. Playing for a new team in primetime could get to him, so it's on the 49ers' offense to avoid placing him in that spot as much as possible.

Hopefully, this is only for one game, but 49ers fans should anticipate that Pineiro is out in Week 13 as well. The 49ers have the Bye Week after that, so they may be inclined to sit him again.

It's better to get Pineiro fully healthy so they can fully rely on him for their playoff push.

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