The Pittsburgh Steelers are likely to be without kicker Chris Boswell for tomorrow’s game against Washington Football Team. After landing on yesterday’s injury report as questionable with a hip injury, Boswell has been downgraded to doubtful.
Matthew Wright, signed to the practice squad on Monday, will almost certainly be elevated to the 53 before tomorrow’s game as the Steelers’ replacement kicker. It will be his NFL debut.
Pittsburgh signed him as a UDFA out of Central Florida after the 2019 draft. He was carried through training camp, showing off good accuracy but a below average leg, struggling to connect on anything 50+. According to our charting, Wright connected on 21 of 27 attempts at camp. Kicking on Sundays, especially at Heinz Field in December, will be an obviously tougher challenge.
In college, Wright made 77.5% of his field goals and missed only three extra points. He is a Pennsylvania native, growing up in Lancaster before committing to Central Florida. He spent time in the XFL as a member of the Tampa Bay Vipers, though didn’t attempt a kick.
Check out the article we wrote on Wright – and his aerospace engineer background – after he signed as a UDFA.
