Ryan Fitzgerald brings accuracy and a big leg to the Panthers' kicking competition
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Before he signed with the Carolina Panthers on Friday, Ryan Fitzgerald already had a favorite barbecue spot in Charlotte and a private gym where he worked out alongside Luke Kuechly and current Panthers players Andy Dalton and Chandler Zavala this past winter.
Besides a strong leg and an accurate aim, Fitzgerald brings a comfort level to the Panthers' kicking competition.
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'I love it so far,' he said.
Fitzgerald was in Charlotte from January through March, training with his kicking coach, Dan Orner, a former North Carolina kicker who has worked with a number of former and current NFL players, including new Panthers punter Sam Martin.
Fitzgerald ate barbecue at Mac's Speed Shop five or six times, lived in an apartment within walking distance of Quail Hollow Club, site of this week's PGA Championship, kicked at local high schools and on the Charlotte 49ers' fields, and bumped into Kuechly on occasion at the gym.
But none of that played a role in the Panthers' decision to sign the Florida State standout as an undrafted free agent and have him compete with veteran Matthew Wright for Eddy Pineiro's old job.
'First of all, accuracy. But then there's a lot of power in his leg,' head coach Dave Canales said when asked what the Panthers saw in Fitzgerald. 'The ball jumps off of his foot. When we're evaluating the kickers, just looking for the guys that have a process. And he certainly has a plan, certainly has a process.'
Fitzgerald's process changed during a rough 2022 season in which he made only 12 of 20 field goals for the Seminoles. After trying out a new leg swing that year, Fitzgerald switched back to his previous form and got back on track with a 19-of-21 success rate in 2023.
The 5-foot-11, 193-pound Fitzgerald went 13-of-13 last fall to tie Charlotte's Stephen Rusnak as the FBS leader in field goal percentage. Fitzgerald, whose six-year career at FSU included the COVID-shortened season of 2020, was 5-for-5 on field goals of 50-plus yards in 2024, including a 59-yarder that was the third-longest in ACC history.
'Going into 2022, I changed my swing and started off terrible,' Fitzgerald said. 'So I changed it back and I've been money ever since.'
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Pineiro was money for most of his time in Carolina, making 88.9 percent of his field goals to climb into the third spot on the all-time field goal percentage list (at 88.1) behind Justin Tucker and Harrison Butker. But the Panthers didn't have much faith in Pineiro's leg strength, evidenced by his 11 attempts from 50-plus over the past three years.
So they signed Wright in February, chose not to re-sign Pineiro (who remains a free agent) and brought in Fitzgerald after the draft. Wright has made 87.3 percent of his field goals since entering the league in 2020. But he's never found an NFL home, playing for six teams over five years.
Fitzgerald has kicked in Bank of America Stadium once previously, hitting three field goals — including two in the fourth quarter — to help Florida State beat Louisville 16-6 in the 2023 ACC Championship Game.
The Panthers won't wait until training camp to get the competition underway.
'We'll start kicking now. And we'll give those guys opportunities,' Canales said. 'Places I've been in the past in Tampa and Seattle, there was fun things at the end of practice. It's like, 'All right, let's put the guys up. Let's get the team around them and just create a competitive moment.''
Fitzgerald welcomes it.
'I think at this level, every year, regardless of the team, it's gonna be a competition. I love that. I'm a competitor,' he said. 'But the key to that is just focus on myself. It's me versus the uprights, not me versus another guy. I'm sure that's the same for Matt's mindset as well. Just excited to get to work with the guys.'
Those uprights were a little skinnier than what Fitzgerald was used to when he joined special teams coach Tracy Smith for some pre-practice kicks Friday at rookie camp. The Panthers have a practice goal post with uprights that are nine feet apart, the Arena League standard that is about half the 18.5-feet width on NFL goal posts.
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'I kicked pretty good on them. I only missed a couple on the tiny ones, which would've been good on the big ones,' Fitzgerald said. 'It was a pretty solid day.'
Fitzgerald has become a pretty solid golfer after he began playing in college. He said there's a similar motion between swinging a golf club and swinging his leg through a kick.
'You can think of the club face as your foot and your path. If you're gonna hit a draw or a fade with a football as well. I typically hit about a 1-yard draw if there's no wind. So it's kind of similar to that,' he said. 'I also draw it on the golf course, too, when I hit it well.'
Fitzgerald, a 9-handicap, said he's looking forward to playing with Martin, the former Buffalo Bills punter who is also an avid golfer. Fitzgerald, who grew up in south Georgia an hour north of Tallahassee, Fla., is planning to attend the PGA Championship this week.
Told that Panthers owner David Tepper is a Quail Hollow member who could get him on the course to play a round, Fitzgerald laughed and said: 'I'll have to see about that.'
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