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Rodrigo Blankenship’s three-year run with the Indianapolis Colts came to an abrupt end this week after missing a potential game-winning field goal in a 20-20 overtime game against the Houston Texans on Sunday.
On Tuesday, he was released. On Wednesday, Blankenship was seen practicing by himself.
Rodrigo Blankenship of the Indianapolis Colts misses a field goal attempt during overtime against the Houston Texans at NRG Stadium in Houston, Texas, on Sunday. (Bob Levey/Getty Images)
According to FOX59, the 25-year-old placekicker was spotted practicing field goals at the Grand Park Sports Campus, near Indy’s training facility.
Blankenship missed the 42-yard field goal that would have given the Colts a Week 1 victory, but he had uglier moments in the game, including two kickoffs that went out of bounds, that ultimately led to his dismissal.
Before Tuesday’s announcement, head coach Frank Reich seemed to suggest that the Colts weren’t rushing into any decision.
Blankenship won the Colts kicking job as an undrafted rookie out of Georgia in 2020. (Bob Levey/Getty Images)
"In my mind, he’s our kicker," Reich said after the game, via the Indianapolis Star. "We go back, and everybody gets evaluated. Coaches, players, we all get evaluated. If I’ve learned one thing over the years, it’s: Don’t rush into those kinds of decisions. Let (general manager) Chris (Ballard) and I get a chance to talk about, everybody gets evaluated."
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Blankenship will be replaced by either Chase McLaughlin or Lucas Havrisik on Sunday in Jacksonville. The two kickers were signed to the practice squad and will spend this week fighting for the job.
Blankenship won the kicking job as an undrafted rookie out of Georgia in 2020, but after scoring 139 points in a strong rookie season, he struggled.
A hip injury sidelined Blankenship for much of the 2021 season. (Leslie Plaza Johnson/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
A hip injury would sideline him for much of the 2021 season. Blankenship missed three of 14 field-goal attempts and an extra point in five games before finishing the season on injured reserve.
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A strong performance during training camp to win the starting job this season proved fruitless in the end for the third-year pro.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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