After his historically woeful performance against the Buccaneers last week—in which he became the first kicker in NFL history to miss four extra-point attempts in one game—Cowboys kicker Brett Maher was a major topic of conversation heading into Sunday’s divisional-round matchup against the 49ers.
Hours before kickoff, let’s just say that things could have gone better.
Maher reportedly struggled mightily during pregame warmups, missing several kicks from various distances, per The Athletic‘s Tim Kawakami. After the shaky performance, he was even approached on the field by owner and general manager Jerry Jones for a brief conversation.
Jones’s on-field meeting with his embattled kicker came shortly after a brief confrontation between Cowboys’ specialists and members of the 49ers, who apparently took issue with where Maher was taking his practice kicks. San Francisco personnel actually stood in the way of the kicks and prevented Maher from continuing, but eventually left and allowed the proceedings to resume.
Maher received plenty of public support from people within the organization, from teammates to head coach Mike McCarthy to Jones himself. While warmups and the actual game are two very different things, Maher’s pregame showing was certainly not what Cowboys fans wanted to see just before the biggest game of the season.
