Ficken in, Vedvik out as Jets kicker carousel spins

FLORHAM PARK, N.J. -- The New York Jets have changed kickers. Again.

Two days after Kaare Vedvik's disastrous NFL debut, the Jets have signed Sam Ficken, who was cut recently by the Green Bay Packers.

Ficken, who was on the Packers' preseason roster, will be the Jets' fourth kicker since the start of training camp.

Vedvik was placed on waivers.

The Jets opted for Ficken after a morning tryout at their facility that consisted of five free-agent kickers. His only regular-season experience came in 2017 and 2018 with the Los Angeles Rams, but it was only four games. He made 3 of 6 field goals (a long of 34 yards) and was 14-for-15 on extra points.

Ficken attempted only one field goal for the Packers in the preseason (he made it), and was 5-for-5 on extra points.

The Jets gave up on Vedvik, whom they claimed on waivers from the Minnesota Vikings, after he missed an extra point and a 45-yard field goal in the 17-16 loss to the Buffalo Bills.

On Monday, coach Adam Gase expressed his frustration, saying, "What do you want me to do? We haven't performed well. We're going to try to figure out a way to fix it."

The Jets' kicking saga started in March, when they let Jason Myers -- a Pro Bowl selection -- leave via free agency. He signed with the Seattle Seahawks, who gave him a $5.5 million guarantee.

The Jets didn't want to spend that much on a kicker and opted for Chandler Catanzaro, who struggled in training camp and retired abruptly after the second preseason game.

They conducted tryouts and signed Taylor Bertolet, who imploded in the final preseason game.

That led them to Vedvik, who was released by the Vikings after missing three of four field goals. It was a stunner because they had traded a fifth-round pick for him.

The Jets loved Vedvik's leg strength, thinking they could get him right in a week for the opener. It didn't happen.

New general manager Joe Douglas inherited the kicking situation because his predecessor, Mike Maccagnan, decided not to re-sign Myers. Gase was part of that decision, but he was in no mood to reflect on it.

"That was a long time ago," Gase said. "I don't even remember what was discussed. ... I'm not talking about what happened in the past. It's irrelevant."