New Orleans Saints head coach Kellen Moore confirmed that Charlie Smith will retain his starting kicker role this weekend against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
The 24-year-old made his NFL debut against the Miami Dolphins on Sunday, kicking a 56-yard field goal and converting an onside kick in the team’s 21-17 loss.
advertise
After cutting Blake Group against the Dolphins, the Saints signed Cade York but opted to once again keep the more experienced NFL kicker on the practice squad in place of Smith.
Asked who would play on Sunday, Moore said: “We’ll go with Charlie.”
“Charlie’s ready to go. He did really well last week and we’re in a good developmental stage with both of those guys.”
The Mayobridge native was part of the NFL’s International Player Pathway program and originally signed with the Saints in March 2024 and participated in pre-season games in August, making his debut last weekend in Florida.
advertise
Coach Moore described Smith’s first NFL points as “phenomenal,” adding that the former Down GAA goalkeeper “earned this opportunity.”
“He’s ready. We have a lot of confidence in him. He’s obviously capable of making some big plays,” Moore said after the loss to the Dolphins.
“It was a challenging situation but we needed to get some points in that situation and he drilled that and he did really well.”