The Indianapolis Colts and pending free agent kicker Matt Gay agreed to a four-year deal Monday night to make him one of the highest-paid players at the position.
Though this is not the splash signing that Colts fans were hoping for, it does give the team stability at an extremely volatile position and one they’ve struggled to find consistency with since the retirement of Adam Vinatieri.
Here are seven things to know about the Colts’ new kicker:
1
Utah Valley soccer
Gay initially attended Utah Valley, playing soccer for two seasons (2014-2015) for the Wolverines. He also was the first player from Utah to attend the U-17 USA Men’s National Team residency program.
2
Transfer to Utah
After his two seasons at Utah Valley, Gay transferred to Utah as a walk-on for the Utes football team. He became the school’s seventh consensus All-American following the 2017 season after he led the nation in field goals made (27), field goals made per game (2.25), field goals or 50 yards or more (five, tied) and field goals attempted (31).
He was the 2017 Lou Groza Award winner as well as the 2017 Vlade Award winner.
During his two seasons at Utah, Gay converted 56-of-65 field-goal attempts (86.2%) and all 85 of his extra-point attempts.
3
2019 NFL draft
Gay was a fifth-round pick (No. 145 overall) with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers during the 2019 NFL draft. He spent his rookie season with the Bucs converting 27-of-35 field-goal attempts (77.1%) and 43-of-48 extra-point attempts (89.6%).
After going through the entire 2020 offseason with the team that drafted him, Gay was waived by the Bucs during the final roster cuts.
4
Short stint with Colts
A week or so after being waived by the Buccaneers, the Colts signed Gay to the practice squad. He spent the majority of the season on the practice squad working behind Rodrigo Blankenship and then was signed to the Los Angeles Rams active roster for the final seven games of the 2020 regular season.
5
Stint with Rams
Gay has spent the last two-plus seasons with the Rams, appearing in 41 games. He’s risen considerably in the ranks since then and has made a name for himself as one of the most accurate kickers in the game.
Over the last two seasons, Gay has converted 60-of-64 field-goal attempts (93.8%) and has missed just two of his 81 extra-point attempts during that span. That includes converting 12-of-15 field-goal attempts from 50 yards or more.
6
Historic accuracy
Though his career is still in its early stages, Gay already ranks among the most accurate kickers in the history of the game. Among kickers with at least 100 career field-goal attempts, Gay’s 87.8% conversion rate ranks as the fifth-best mark in the game.
He trails only Justin Tucker (90.5%), Younghoe Koo (89.1%), Daniel Carlson (88.3%) and Harrison Butker (88.2%).
7
A historic deal
Gay made a bit of history with the deal he’s set to sign with the Colts. His four-year deal is worth up to $22.5 million, which is the richest contract for a free-agent kicker in the history of the game. He’s also set to make the most money over three years for a kicker on the deal.
Gay’s $22.5 million deal is the third-most among active kickers and the second-most in terms of average annual value ($5.6). While the deal may get sensationalized a little bit, it’s likely that the AAV will account for no more than 5% of the salary cap.
