Ram Who Was on Thin Ice Peaking at Perfect Time With Playoffs Starting
The Los Angeles Rams enter the playoffs as the incredibly hot team no one wants to face. L.A. won its previous five games, and six of its last seven, heading into a Week 18, allowing Sean McVay to rest several of his key veterans before Wild Card Weekend.
However, for those suiting up on Sunday versus the Seattle Seahawks, this game offered some important last-minute reps to build even more positive momentum going into the postseason. And it turns out one player who was previously on shaky footing has made the most of the opportunity in the regular-season finale.
K Joshua Karty (@JoshuaKarty) recorded a career-long 58-yard field goal to end the first half, tied for the second-longest made field goal by a rookie this season. It’s also the second-longest made field goal by a Rams rookie behind Greg Zuerlein’s 60-yard field goal (twice in… pic.twitter.com/9kLgiUUw8S
— Los Angeles Rams PR (@TheLARamsPR) January 5, 2025
Rookie kicker Joshua Karty showed off his long-distance potential against Seattle, nailing a 58-yard field goal try going into halftime. That marks his high so far as an NFL pro, and it also put him behind only Rams legend Greg Zuerlein for the longest FG made by a rookie kicker in franchise history.
Now, as kickers around the league continue to only get better and better, 58 yards isn't ground-breaking -- but it's still great to see from Karty nonetheless.
This is a player who entered Week 18 only 25-of-30 on field goals this season, along with four misses on extra points. His struggles got so bad that some were even calling for Los Angeles to possibly replace the Stanford product toward the end of November.
Yet, Karty's turned things around starting in December. He was a perfect 9-for-9 on field goals in the final full month of the season, then followed that up with Sunday's booming kick against the Seahawks.
The rookie is clearly peaking, and it could not come at a better time. Los Angeles is heading into a postseason with the NFC mostly up in the air, as each top contender has flaws that could prevent a trip to the Super Bowl. That means every matchup the Rams go into figures to be a dog fight with one score possibly being all it takes to win or lose.
With Karty in top form, L.A.'s coaches can suddenly be a lot more confident that if things come down to a field goal kick, they have the guy who can come through.
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