Jets sign former Cowboys, Rams K Greg Zuerlein

It looks like the Jets will have an open kicking competition between two veterans.

New York signed former Cowboys kicker Greg Zuerlein, the team announced Saturday. Zuerlein’s deal is a one-year contract worth $2.75 million, according to The Athletic’s Connor Hughes. He’ll battle with Eddy Piñeiro, who recently signed his RFA tender to remain with the Jets.

Zuerlein connected went 29-35 on field goal attempts in 2021 and 42-48 on extra-point attempts. He has a career kicking percentage of 82.2 percent over a 10-year NFL career. Zuerlein started as a sixth-round pick with the Rams out of Missouri Western State in 2012 and kicked in 119 games for them. He signed with the Cowboys in 2020 and has kicked for them ever since.

Signing Zuerlein signals the Jets want to ensure they have a quality veteran at the kicker position. New York’s kicking woes have been well-documented since they let Nick Folk leave in 2016, and now they’ll have Zuerlein and Piñeiro to choose from before the 2022 season.

Zuerlein will have stiff competition in Piñeiro, who hit all eight of his field goals in five games with the Jets in 2021.