With the first Cowboys game of the 2023 season only a few days away, I think it is essential to look into a critical aspect.
The Cowboys are holding their faith in rookie kicker Brandon Aubrey.
This got me thinking: Will he impact the way Mike McCarthy calls plays in his debut Sunday night?
I say yes. McCarthy thinks otherwise.
“The opinion of the kicker is obviously – I hate to break the hard news to you – I don't think we see that the same,” McCarthy said to a questioner. “I do have confidence in him, (and) that always grows.”
I find that hard to believe.
I'll be honest with you, I am worried about him. Kicking in practice with no pressure is one thing.
The first time he lines up in the middle of 82,000 people on national television that is an entirely different ball game.
Some of you have to agree with me, don't you?
I hope I'm wrong, but he didn't start kicking a football until the beginning of last year. He was a soccer player.
Brett Maher was solid all season a year ago, but he got cut after he missed a handful of PATs in the playoffs.
Mike McCarthy Play-calling
With that said, how will this mess with how McCarthy calls plays on Sunday night?
We know how much he enjoys going for it on 4th down anyway.
Don't be surprised if, for the first handful of drives, McCarthy decides to pass on a 40-plus field goal and goes for it under 5 yards.
He hasn't been awful this preseason, but with the big name kickers still out there, I just don't get it.
In the preseason finale against the Raiders, Aubrey missed from 59 yards in the first half.
He then made made a kick from the same distance of 59 yards in the fourth quarter. Some say it would have been good from 63-plus.
Aside from the 59-yard attempts, Aubrey has a 29-yard field goal and an 8-for-9 extra point efficiency to hold his hat on from his trial run this month.
“It felt like I had proven myself that I can do just about anything they need me to do on the field,” said Aubrey when asked about making his 59 yard field goal last weekend.
Cowboys K Brandon Aubrey good from 59 pic.twitter.com/OvStdoN7s5
— Jon Machota (@jonmachota) August 27, 2023
In the thick of things, that isn't awful, but until he does it when it ACUALLY counts, I will hold my breath.
Not saying he can't, but man it would be nice to see Robbie Gould or Mason Crosby run out there needing three points on the board.
I am going to give him a chance before I dive into his any further.
He was the USFL's top kicker for its best team, the Birmingham Stallions, connecting on 14 of his 15 field goals and all 35 of his extra points for the 2023 league champions.
We will know soon enough the trust level McCarthy actually has in him. We will see how many times he decides to roll the dice and go for it in the Giants side of the field.
