The Miami Dolphins are in need of some temporary kicking help to start the year. On Monday, head coach Mike McDaniel told reporters that veteran Jason Sanders will be out of action for Week 1 against the Indianapolis Colts. ESPN’s Adam Schefter says it’s worse than just that and the kicker will likely miss four to five weeks.
Sanders, who turns 30 in November, has never missed a game in his NFL career. But with the eighth-year kicker sidelined for about a month, who will the Dolphins call to handle field goals, extra points, and kickoffs in September?
Here are five options:
Zane Gonzalez
The veteran was nearly three years removed from his last NFL kick when the Washington Commanders were forced to turn to Gonzalez last November. But he stepped up and made five of his seven regular season field goals and all 19 of his extra points. Gonzalez stepped up in the postseason too and was seven-of-eight on his field goals and a perfect eight-for-eight on extra points.
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It was enough to earn Gonzalez a one-year extension in Washington, but that was ripped up when the Commanders signed Matt Gay in free agency.
Eddy Piñeiro
Piñeiro bounced around five NFL rosters before sticking with the
Panthers
in 2022. He spent three seasons with the team and hit 80 of his 90 field goals, but reached free agency earlier this year and wasn’t scooped up. Piñeiro currently ranks third all-time in career field goal percentage behind only Justin Tucker and Harrison Butker.
Ben Sauls
The undrafted rookie signed with the Steelers earlier this year, but gave Chris Boswell a run for his money in a kicking competition. In Pittsburgh’s preseason finale, Sauls nailed all four of his field goals tries, including a 50-yarder. His only miss in August appeared to happen in
classic Ray Finkle fashion.
The strong performance of Sauls over the last month has Pittsburgh convinced it might be able to trade the rookie kicker before the Tuesday cut deadline.
Matthew Wright
The 29-year-old veteran has done an astounding amount of bouncing around the NFL in his career, including four stints with the Steelers, and three each with the Chiefs and Panthers. He kicked for three different teams in 2024 (49ers, Chiefs, Titans) and finished the season with 15 made field goals on 16 attempts.
Greg Joseph
The South Africa-native has spent time with a dozen different NFL teams, including five last season. Most recently, he spent part of the 2025 season with the 49ers before he was cut earlier this month. Last year, he finished 16 of his 20 field goals and all 11 of his extra point attempts.