CARDINALS CORNER
Arizona Cardinals K Matt Prater week to week, out vs. Seattle Seahawks
Oct 12, 2022, 1:54 PM
Arizona Cardinals kicker Matt Prater (5) kicks a 34-yard field goal against the Tennessee Titans in the first half of an NFL football game Sunday, Sept. 12, 2021, in Nashville, Tenn. (AP Photo/Mark Zaleski)
(AP Photo/Mark Zaleski)
TEMPE — Arizona Cardinals kicker Matt Prater is considered week to week and will not be ready to go for the team’s Week 6 matchup against the Seattle Seahawks, per head coach Kliff Kingsbury.
This will mark the second straight game Prater will miss due to a hip injury suffered in practice during Week 4.
While he managed to still play in the team’s win over the Carolina Panthers two games back, Prater eventually conceded kickoff duties to running back and emergency kicker Eno Benjamin during the tail end of the victory.
“Doesn’t look like he’ll make it this week,” Kingsbury said when asked if Prater was ready to go. “Hopefully by next Thursday. We’ll see how that goes.”
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This season, Prater is a perfect 6-for-6 from field goal range with a long of 49 yards. He’s also hit all four of his extra points and has 10 touchbacks on 15 kickoffs.
With Prater on the shelf, the Cardinals will turn to kicker Matt Ammendola for another week.
Ammendola, who was a practice squad elevation last week, was signed to the active roster on Wednesday.
In his lone outing as a Cardinal, the kicker missed the game-tying FG from 43 yards uot to force overtime against the Philadelphia Eagles. He was 1-for-2 from field goal range and made both of his extra point attempts in the 20-17 loss.
Despite the miss, offensive lineman Justin Pugh backed the kicker publicly postgame, telling Ammendola to “keep his head up.”
It marked the second straight game Ammendola missed a key kick this season.
As a member of the Kansas City Chiefs in Week 3, the kicker missed a fourth-quarter field goal along with an extra point in what ended up being a 20-17 loss to the Indianapolis Colts. He was released after that game.
“Last week, we had seen him kick well in practice and he has kicked well in games in this league,” Kingsbury said. “We’re past (the miss) and onto this week.”
