The 49ers have agreed to sign kicker Joey Slye (Twitter link via NFL.com’s Tom Pelissero). The veteran kicker will fill in for Robbie Gould, who will miss some period of time with a groin injury. Gould will miss at least three games. The 49ers placed him on IR Tuesday, per NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport (on Twitter), and will move Slye into his roster spot.
The 49ers scratched their longtime kicker just before kickoff Sunday and were forced to use punter Mitch Wishnowsky in double duty. Wishnowsky missed an extra point and a field goal in San Francisco’s loss to Seattle and will give way to a more experienced kicker in Week 5.
Slye, 26, spent some time with the Texans this year, pinch-kicking for Ka’imi Fairbairn. He wound up completing four of his five field goals while going 7-for-8 on extra points. Previously to that, he was with the Panthers, succeeding Graham Gano as the starting kicker in 2019 and keeping the gig through 2020. He improved a bit during his second full season, connecting on 29 of his 36 field goal attempts and 33 of his 36 extra point tries.
His first game with the 49ers will come this week against the Cardinals. This will be Slye’s third team in 2021; Gould, 38, has been San Francisco’s kicker since 2017. He is attached to a four-year, $19MM contract that runs through next season.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.