Rams’ Matt Gay, dropped by Bucs ahead of season, throws game winner against former team

Los Angeles Rams kicker Matt Gay said it was “a little bit crazy” to come back to Tampa Bay to face his former team on Monday Night Football.

Gay threw a 40-yard field goal with 2:36 left to put the Rams ahead 27-24, and Rams safety Jordan Fuller intercepted quarterback Tom Brady with 1:57 left to secure the win and move up to 7 -3.

“You can’t write it down,” Gay said. “It’s one of those stories that you sit on the practice squad and then the first game you activate, you go back to where you were last year and where you were. felt like you should have been and playing. prime time Monday Night Football. There was a lot of emotion for me to come back. “

The Buccaneers selected Gay with a fifth-round pick in 2019, but dropped him ahead of this season. The Rams signed Gay last Monday from the Indianapolis Colts practice team. He arrived in Los Angeles later today and entered COVID-19 protocol before he could join the team on the training ground on Saturday, two days before facing the Bucs.

Gay converted two of three field goal attempts on Monday. He kicked 38 yards in the first quarter to give the Rams a 17-14 lead, then missed a 44-yard attempt with the game to 17 yards in the third quarter before converting to a 40-yard kick. yards that put the Rams. for real.

“Looking at the way Matt performed throughout the game, you could tell there was a lot of confidence,” said Rams coach Sean McVay. “I know he missed once, but you can tell the difference between a ‘miss’ and one where ‘it looks a little shaky.’ He was faithful all night. Great height, good timing and he was very precise. I loved what he did. It was a good shot, a great take, a great operation. He succeeded, and it was as true as it gets. “

As a rookie at Tampa Bay last season, Gay converted 27 of 35 field goal attempts (77.1%) and had 43 of 48 extra points (89.6%). He lost his training camp job this season to veteran Ryan Succop.

Gay said Monday that Los Angeles punter Johnny Hekker was instrumental in the Rams’ decision to sign him.

“Johnny texted me and said he really wanted me here,” Gay said. “He said he personally texted Sean McVay to fight for me.”

The Rams have been looking for a kicker since veteran Greg Zuerlein left for the Dallas Cowboys in free agency in the offseason.

Samuel Sloman, a seventh-round pick from Miami, Ohio, won the starting position over Lirim Hajrullahu and Austin MacGinnis outside of training camp, but was unable to consistently convert field goals and struggled on kickoffs.

The Rams cut Sloman after Week 7 and signed veteran Kai Forbath, who also proved inconsistent before injuring his ankle in Week 11 and being placed on the injured reserve.