Austin Seibert, the Washington Commanders’ kicker, has had better days than the one he had on Sunday, following their painful 34-26 loss to the Dallas Cowboys in week 12.
The Commanders grabbed a ray of hope late in the fourth quarter, scoring a score with less than a minute remaining to trim the Cowboys’ lead to one.
However, Austin Seibert missed the extra point due to a weak snap and hasty hold. To make matters worse, Dallas recovered the onside kick and returned it for a touchdown, resulting in Washington’s sad defeat at Northwest Stadium on Sunday.
When a reporter queried Seibert about the low snap, allowing him to share some of the responsibility, he instantly dismissed the idea, saying, “[The snap] made no difference at all. It’s on me.”
Washington attempted an onside kick, but it bounced right to Juanyeh Thomas, who spotted a break in the Commanders’ line and returned the ball 43 yards for a touchdown. The final score basically ended Washington’s chances of a late comeback.
Seibert responded similarly when asked about the missed onside kick. “I should have hit it a little bit more left,” Seibert observed. “Hit it directly to the guy. That is what you get when this happens. So that rests on me as well.”
The 28-year-old, coming off an injury, struggled throughout the game, missing another extra point, a field goal, and the key PAT.
Commanders quarterback Jayden Daniels linked up with wide receiver Terry McLaurin for an 86-yard touchdown pass with just 21 seconds remaining, giving Seibert a seemingly straightforward extra point attempt.
The Cowboys’ victory snapped a five-game losing streak and stunned many observers who expected the Commanders to win for the eighth time this season in pursuit of the NFC East lead.
The Cowboys and Commanders had already had an interesting game, with the sides scoring only 19 points combined in the first three quarters.
The Commanders, who are currently on a three-game losing run, dropped to 7-5 with the loss and cannot afford to depend on Seibert regaining his confidence after missing two PATs against the Cowboys.
Washington thought they’d found their kicker for 2024 when they signed Brandon McManus to a one-year, $3.6 million contract in March.
The idea to have McManus as their kicker fell apart a few months later, when he was accused of sexually abusing two flight attendants on a team trip with the Jacksonville Jaguars in 2023. The lawsuit was dismissed, and the NFL found no evidence of McManus’ misbehavior, but the Commanders released him immediately after the claims appeared.
On September 10, the Commanders signed Seibert, who came into the game against the Cowboys having made 25 of 27 field goal tries and a perfect 10 of 10 PATs.
Zane Gonzalez, the Commanders’ secondary kicker option, is 3-for-3 on field goals and 4-for-4 on PATs in two games in 2024.
The Commanders are Seibert’s fifth squad in six seasons, and his struggles with PATs aren’t new—he converted only 30 of 35 PAT tries as a rookie with the Cleveland Browns in 2019.
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