The Dallas Cowboys probably deserve credit for recognizing a problem and working quickly to fix it.
So ... is it fixed?
The Cowboys are signing kicker Brett Maher following his Tuesday workout at the team's training camp in Oxnard. And in an obviously related move, it is Texas Tech UDFA rookie Jonathan Garibay who is being waived.
So following the Tuesday four-man tryout, it is CFL standout Lirim Hajrullahu who is left standing, and he is practicing today as the club works toward finalizing the reunion with Maher. on field now.
The new kicker competition being set up? Hajrullahu vs. Maher.
The Cowboys brought in four kickers for workouts on Tuesday, according to personnel boss Will McClay. The names:
The familiar Brett Maher.
Cole Murphy.
Matt Ammendola.
J.J. Molson.
"We just want to get a look at the best available kickers right now,” McClay said, a gentlemanly way of saying that the two fellas who have spent the last few months in Dallas practice uniforms and who have spent the last two weeks struggling at training camp might not be "the best available kickers right now.''
Maher spent the 2018 and 2019 seasons in Dallas, making 80.6 percent and 66.7 percent of his field goals. He jumped to 88.9 percent last season (16-of-18) with the Saints
Ammendola spent six games last year with the New York Jets, making 13 of 19 field goals for them (68.4 percent).
Cole Murphy was with the USFL’s Michigan Panthers, where he made 11 of his 12 field goals.
JJ Molson has spent parts of the last two seasons on the Green Bay Packers’ practice squad.
Are these guys better than those guys?
How rough has it been for rookie Jonathan Garibay and for CFL star Lirim Hajrullahu? So rough that it was only a few days ago when a team source indicated to us that Dallas' plan was to get through this week, including the Saturday preseason game at the Denver Broncos, before deciding that this pair wasn't right for the job.
But neither of the two kickers currently on the roster have impressed on a consistent basis. (See a practice notebook here.) ... and so the search is on.
The former CFL star Hajrullahu, we might say, has been less bad than the Texas Tech UDFA rookie Garibay, but that's about as complimentary as we're going to be.
“These two are competing for a job, McCarthy said. "At some point they got to start getting comfortable and making kicks more consistently. That is just stating the facts.''
"At the end of the day, the rope is here. Someone has to grab it.”
And now it's Maher's turn to make the grab.
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