Arizona Cardinals kicker Chad Ryland may have missed a few field goals this season, but the entire franchise is missing the mark as well in 2025. Furthermore, bringing in kicker Joshua Karty as a pretentious move of positivity is actually a slight to Ryland, who has the talent and stats to support his competency.
In Ryland’s defense, he might be psychologically set back by the team’s laborious losing streak. Maybe Ryland wants to make meaningful kicks — extra points after epic touchdowns and game-winners, instead of being just the last resort after offensive coordinator Drew Petzing’s attack fails. The Cardinals have lacked competitiveness this season and Ryland’s missed kicks only hint towards a broader narrative, not a basic negation of his innate ability. NFL kickers get moved around quite often and the Cardinals haven’t waived Ryland so it seems odd that the franchise would step on his toes by bringing in Karty with only two games left in the regular season.
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Karty is 10-for-15 on field goals this season, and if the Cardinals plan to bench Ryland any time soon, Karty will bear the responsibility of being perfect in his stead. A switch at kicker has not been confirmed by head coach Jonathan Gannon, but the news surrounding Karty seems a tad vain considering the upcoming task at hand versus the Cincinnati Bengals. Needless to say, the way the Bengals offense has been playing, the Cardinals will need more than three points per possession to get a win in Week 17.
Arizona Cardinals place kicker Chad Ryland (38) kicks a field goal against the Atlanta Falcons during the first half at State Farm Stadium in Glendale on Dec. 21, 2025.
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This article originally appeared on Cards Wire: Cardinals may chalk up K Chad Ryland, but it won’t hurt his career