Cardinals bring in former ASU punter Matt Haack, 3 others for tryout
May 12, 2023, 11:36 AM
Arizona State Sun Devils punter Matt Haack #26 punts the ball during the second half of the Pac-12 college football game against the UCLA Bruins at Sun Devil Stadium in Tempe, Az. Arizona State beat UCLA 23-20. (Photo by Chris Coduto/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
(Photo by Chris Coduto/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
TEMPE — The Arizona Cardinals brought in a familiar face to the area for a tryout Friday in former Arizona State Sun Devils punter Matt Haack.
He along with punter Ty Long, wide receiver Marquez Stevenson and running back Christian Beal-Smith worked out at the team’s practice facility.
Arizona is in need of a punter with veteran booter Andy Lee a free agent. Lee spent the past six seasons in Arizona and was a trusted piece for special teams coordinator and assistant head coach Jeff Rodgers over the years.
“We just wanted to get our eyes on some guys live and the roster with (Monti Ossenfort). It’s awesome to hear him talking about it,” first-year head coach Jonathan Gannon said Friday. “It’s an ever-evolving thing and we’re always going to try to create a competitive roster and improve our roster when we can.
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“That’s not to say we’re going to make decisions on one workout here or there, but there’s an aggressive mindset of how you want to improve your roster on a daily basis.”
Haack is coming off 17 games played with the Indianapolis Colts in 2022. He averaged 44.8 yards across 70 punts last season.
He entered the league with the Miami Dolphins as an undrafted rookie free agent in 2017. Haack hung around Miami until 2020 before joining the Buffalo Bills in the following season.
Before Haack headed to the NFL, he spent four seasons at ASU. He registered 209 punts and averaged 43.9 yards per attempt.
Long tries out in Arizona after spending time on the New York Jets practice squad in 2022. He was also a practice squad member for Washington (2015) and Pittsburgh (2016) before joining the BC Lions of the CFL (2017-18) and Los Angeles Chargers (2019-21).
Stevenson arrived in the Valley after being waived earlier this week by the Cleveland Browns, who had signed the wide receiver to a futures contract this past January.
Stevenson entered the league as a 2021 sixth-round draft pick for the Buffalo Bills.
Beal-Smith worked out for Arizona following a single season (nine games played) at South Carolina.
