With Mike Nugent going on Injured Reserve, the Bengals spent Tuesday looking for a new kicker to replace him with. So the Bengals held tryouts with between Shane Andrus, Hunter Lawrence, ultimately rewarding the job to former Ohio State Buckeye Aaron Pettrey, writes Geoff Hobson.
Pettrey, a Kentucky native, is a rookie who signed with Carolina as a free agent after the draft. After the Panthers cut him, he hooked on with Detroit for the preseason and was cut the day after he missed his only field-goal try, a 42-yarder against Pittsburgh.
Pettrey converted 14 of 20 field goal attempts last year with the Ohio State Buckeyes. Since he's a rookie who hasn't found an NFL team during the regular season yet, he has to make an official kick. Per CBS Sports' draft analysis:
Right-footed kicker. Very good leg strength, making 53-55-yard field goals without losing a lot of trajectory because of his height and upright kicking style. Minimum drift on his kicks, typically straight or slight draw. Nice strike through the zone, but may need to speed up approach at the next level. Generally good accuracy; missed a couple of short field-goal attempts that may not be a problem in the NFL because he would kick against less of an angle.
Nice trajectory on kickoffs, which allows the cover unit to get downfield. Can dribble onside kicks up the middle. May need work on more typical NFL high kick to the sideline.