The Chiefs identified their Matt Ammendola replacement. They are adding former Jaguars kicker Matthew Wright to their practice squad, Field Yates of ESPN.com tweets.
Wright will move into position as Kansas City’s Harrison Butker fill-in leg. It is not known if Butker will be able to return for Week 4, after missing the past two games, but the Chiefs decided Ammendola — after two short-range misses in Sunday’s loss to the Colts — was not the answer.
The Jaguars waived Wright earlier this year, after he spent most of last season as their kicker. Wright, 26, made 21 of 24 field goal tries during his Jags tenure. His most notable contribution came during the team’s most recent London game, which involved two Wright 50-plus-yard makes in the fourth quarter. That effort gave Urban Meyer the first of his two NFL wins, but the Jags replaced Wright this year. While Jacksonville has encountered trouble staffing its kicker gig in the months following Wright’s May exit, this marks his first opportunity since that departure.
Ammendola kicked in two games for the Chiefs this season. After making each of his five kicks (two field goals, three extra points), the former Jet missed a PAT and a 34-yard field goal Sunday in Indianapolis. Each of Wright’s three 2021 misses came from beyond 40 yards. He was 4-for-6 from beyond 50.
The Chiefs have been without Butker since Week 1, when he suffered an ankle injury early in Kansas City’s win in Arizona. Although the team used safety Justin Reid as its emergency kicker against the Cardinals, it naturally opted for trained NFL legs since.
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