Should Harrison Butker be unavailable for the Chiefs’ Week 4 game against the Buccaneers, Matt Ammendola will almost certainly not be the player filling in. The Chiefs released the young kicker from their practice squad Monday, Field Yates of ESPN.com tweets.
The Jets’ primary kicker in 2021, Ammendola caught on with the Chiefs to replace Butker in Week 2. While he made all five of his kicks against the Chargers (two field goals, three extra points), the Oklahoma State product struggled against the Colts. The second-year kicker missed the only extra point he tried and was 1-for-2 on field goals, with the miss coming from 34 yards out.
Kansas City elevated Ammendola from the practice squad to its active roster ahead of its Week 3 game in Indianapolis. Due to the increased P-squad flexibility the league introduced in 2020, teams can elevate two players to gameday rosters without exposing them to waivers. Ammendola reverted to the Chiefs’ P-squad Monday, but the team is not saving a spot for him at this point.
Although other blunders — including a decision to roll out an unsuccessful fake-field goal play — led to the Chiefs’ upset loss in Indianapolis, Ammendola’s were likely to lead to his exit. The 25-year-old specialist was just 13-for-19 on field goals as a Jet, leading the team to sign Greg Zuerlein. The Pro Bowler beat out Ammendola in training camp this year, but Butker’s injury — after the Chiefs used safety Justin Reid as their emergency kicker in Week 1 — led to another opportunity.
No other kickers reside on the Chiefs’ taxi squad. Workouts will likely be on tap to replace Ammendola in that role. Butker, who has been in place as Kansas City’s kicker since early in the 2017 season, entered this season having missed just one career game.
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