Jets release Sam Ficken, bring in another inexperienced kicker

Jets training camp is underway, which naturally means the kicking carousel has begun to rotate in Florham Park.

But Sam Ficken’s ride with the Jets came to a halt on Friday, as the 28-year-old was cut. Ficken struggled over the spring and in the early days of training camp, including two misses from 50-plus yards in the practice prior to his release, per The Athletic’s Connor Hughes.

Rather than keep Ficken, who only made 76.2% of his field goals and 85.4% of his extra points in 24 games with the Jets, New York signed Matt Ammendola. An undrafted kicker out of Oklahoma State in 2020, Ammendola has yet to appear in an NFL game after spending time with the Panthers earlier this offseason. Carolina cut him on May 16.

Ammendola hit 76.9% of his field goals and 97.8% of his extra points in college. He ranked third among all active FBS players with 359 career points by the time his college career ended.

Now Ammendola will get a chance to compete with another unseasoned kicker. Chris Naggar, a 2021 non-draftee out of SMU, is the only other kicker on New York’s roster, for now anyway. We’ll see if either legman gives the Jets a reason not to pursue someone with more experience.

List

4 things to know about Jets' UDFA K Chris Naggar