Jake Moody missed another crucial field goal on Sunday.
He missed it in the third quarter of the 49ers’ 29-17 loss to the Dolphins. At the time, the 49ers trailed 16-10. The game was close. And so was the field goal: just a 41-yarder. A given for a good kicker. But Moody is not a good kicker; he just has a strong leg. And so he hooked the short field goal attempt wide left.
After the game, a reporter asked head coach Kyle Shanahan about his current level of trust in Moody.
Shanahan paused for a few seconds trying to gather the right words, then said, “I mean, it wasn’t good to miss that kick. I don’t know exactly what happened during the snap and hold, but it did. one he has to make.”
Sounds like a head coach who’s had enough of his kicker.
The 49ers drafted Moody in the third round last year. He was solid as a rookie. He made 84 percent of his field goal attempts, which ranked 20th in the league. He also scored 60 of the 61 extra points in the regular season.
But in the playoffs, Moody missed one field goal in each of the 49ers’ three games, including a missed extra point in the Super Bowl. And he hasn’t seemed to recover since.
This season, Moody has made just 76.7 percent of his field goal attempts, which ranks 29th in the NFL.
I suspect he won’t be in the team next season.
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