Getty The Rams encourage Matt Gay following a field goal miss on December 8, 2022.
Now that the Los Angeles Rams are wrapping up June 2023 minicamp, Sean McVay, Les Snead and company can turn their attention to who will head to UC Irvine in late July for training camp. And it began with announcing two roster changes — including for a spot where replacing a past Pro Bowler is needed.
Revealed by the team on the late afternoon of Thursday, June 15, the team announced a waive/no recall for two players: Collin Duncan and Christopher Dunn at defensive back and placekicker, respectively.
The latter decision, though, impacts who replaces 2021 Pro Bowler Matt Gay.
Speculation Builds That the Rams May Have Found Their Replacement for the Beloved PK
Though Gay isn’t considered a face of the league or was the face of the Rams, he was still beloved inside the “Rams House” for his powerful leg — a leg that came in handy in eliminating Tom Brady and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers during the divisional round of the 2021 season.
That kick was additionally during his best season as a pro — which witnessed Gay hit seven of nine attempts from 50 yards out. He was also a flawless four-for-four from between 40-49 yards out and eight-for-eight inside 30. Gay only missed two field goal attempts during the Super Bowl 56 run — both from more than 49 yards out.
Now that he’s with the Indianapolis Colts, finding the replacement for Gay became one of the rare top priorities for the Rams this offseason. Now, following the waive for Dunn, fans have began wondering if the Rams may have found his replacement.
“Interesting. They must like the Oklahoma State rookie kicker Tanner Brown more,” one fan said on Twitter in reacting to the transaction.
Dunn, though, came to the Rams as the 2022 Lou Groza Award winner — which honors the best placekicker in college football. He was also a consensus First-Team All-American while at North Carolina State. He even became the NCAA career leader in field goals made with 97 and scored 491 total career points according to the NC State football website. He also led the nation in field goals per game.
Again, the decision to waive Dunn presents the theory that the Rams will turn to Brown moving forward.
“I am surprised Brown beat out Dunn, the best kicker in college in 2022. Maybe they go out and sign a vet? Hate being in this position, kicker is so important. Should’ve found a way to pay Matt Gay in my opinion,” one more Rams fan said.
Duncan Began Facing Crowded DB Room, Especially Safety
Duncan, meanwhile, faced more longer odds in making the final 53-man Rams roster.
He entered a safety room that featured 2021 captain Jordan Fuller returning from injury, plus has 2022 draft pick Quentin Lake vying for a starting role now that last season’s starters Taylor Rapp and Nick Scott are with the Buffalo Bills and Cincinnati Bengals, respectively.
Duncan, though, was one of five rookies in the safety room following the 2023 NFL Draft.
Now the Rams safety room outside of Fuller and Lake features undrafted rookies Tanner Ingle (a NC State teammate of Dunn’s), Quindell Johnson (Memphis), Jason Taylor II (Oklahoma State) and Rashad Torrance II (Florida).
