Chandler Catanzaro

Chandler Catanzaro (born February 26, 1991) is an American football placekicker who is a free agent. He was signed by the Arizona Cardinals as an undrafted free agent in 2014 and later played for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, New York Jets, and Carolina Panthers. He played college football at Clemson.

Chandler Catanzaro

Catanzaro with the New York Jets in 2017.
Free agent
Position:	Placekicker
Personal information
Born:	February 26, 1991 Augusta, Georgia
Height:	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)
Weight:	210 lb (95 kg)
Career information
High school:	Greenville (SC) Christ Church Episcopal
College:	Clemson
Undrafted:	2014
Career history
Arizona Cardinals (2014–2016) New York Jets (2017) Tampa Bay Buccaneers (2018) Carolina Panthers (2018) New York Jets (2019–2020)* New York Giants (2020)*
* Offseason and/or practice squad member only
Career NFL statistics
Field goals: 128 Field goal attempted: 142 Field goal%: 83.8 Longest field goal: 60 Touchbacks: 237 Player stats at NFL.com
Player stats at PFR

Early years

Catanzaro attended and played high school football at Christ Church Episcopal School.[1] He was considering two colleges: Furman University and Clemson University.[2]

College career

Catanzaro attended Clemson University from 2009–2013. After a freshman year, in which he only made 14 of 22 field goals, he finished with a field goal percentage of 81.7%, missing only one kick in each of his junior and senior years.[3] Catanzaro is the all-time leading scorer in Clemson history with 404 points.

Collegiate statistics

Chandler Catanzaro
Year	School	Conf	Class	Pos	G	XPM	XPA	XP%	FGM	FGA	FG%	Pts
2010	Clemson	ACC	FR	K	13	34	34	100.0	14	22	63.6	76
2011	Clemson	ACC	SO	K	14	52	53	98.1	22	27	81.5	118
2012	Clemson	ACC	JR	K	13	57	59	96.6	18	19	94.7	111
2013	Clemson	ACC	SR	K	13	60	61	98.4	13	14	92.9	99
Career	Clemson					203	207	98.1	67	82	81.7	404

Professional career

Arizona Cardinals

Catanzaro lining up a kick in the 2014 season.

In May 2014, the Arizona Cardinals signed the undrafted Catanzaro to compete along with veterans Jay Feely and Danny Hrapmann.[4] On August 25, 2014, Feely was cut, giving the kicking job to Catanzaro.[5]

Catanzaro made his NFL debut on September 8, 2014, against the San Diego Chargers, kicking two field goals.[6]

On September 14, 2014, Catanzaro kicked four field goals against the New York Giants.[7] He became first Cardinals rookie kicker since Bill Gramatica (December 2, 2001, against the Oakland Raiders) with four field goals in a game.[8]

On September 21, 2014, Catanzaro kicked a season/career-long 51-yard field goal against the San Francisco 49ers, which represents the longest field goal by a rookie in Arizona Cardinals history.[9][10]

On October 26, 2014, he made his 16th consecutive field goal from the start of his career without a miss, setting an NFL rookie record.[11]

On November 9, 2014, he extended the streak to 17, but missed his second attempt.[12] This effort tied Kai Forbath for the record for most consecutive field goals to start a career.[13]

Catanzaro made 29 field goals in the 2014 season, which is the fourth-most in a single season in Arizona Cardinals history, behind Greg Davis (30), Jay Feely (30), and Neil Rackers (40).[14]

At the end of the 2014 season, Catanzaro established a new franchise rookie record with 114 points, shattering the previous mark of 73 set by placekicker Bill Gramatica in 2001. Catanzaro's 114 points ranked as the second-highest total among NFL rookies behind only the Philadelphia Eagles’ Cody Parkey (150).

On October 4, 2015, Catanzaro kicked a career-high five field goals against the St. Louis Rams.[15]

On September 25, 2016, Catanzaro kicked a career-long 60-yard field goal against the Buffalo Bills in Buffalo. At the time, it was only the 16th field goal of at least 60 yards in the history of the NFL.[16]

On October 23, 2016, Catanzaro missed the game-winning field goal in overtime against the Seattle Seahawks. The game eventually ended in a 6-6 tie.[17]

New York Jets

On March 10, 2017, Catanzaro signed with the New York Jets.[18]

On September 10, 2017, in the season opening 21–12 loss to the Buffalo Bills, Catanzaro converted a 48-yard field goal and a 52-yard field goal in his Jets debut.[19]

On October 1, 2017, in Week 4, the Jets were playing at home against the Jacksonville Jaguars. The game went into overtime with a score of 20–20. Catanzaro had missed a 45-yard field goal earlier in the game. With only 32 seconds left in overtime, he drilled a 41-yard field goal to win the game.[20]

On October 8, 2017 in Week 5, Catanzaro kicked a 57-yard field goal, the longest in Jets franchise history.[21]

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

On March 16, 2018, Catanzaro signed a three-year contract with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.[22][23] In the season opener against the New Orleans Saints, he tied his career-high with six extra points converted.[24] On October 21, 2018, in a Week 7 matchup against the Cleveland Browns, after having missed an extra point attempt and a 40-yard field goal attempt earlier in the game Catanzaro hit a game winning 59-yard field goal in overtime to end the game 26-23, in the process setting the record for the longest field goal made in overtime in NFL history.[25] On November 12, 2018, Catanzaro was released by the Buccaneers after missing two field goals in a 16-3 loss to the Washington Redskins.[26] He finished his time with the Buccaneers 11-for-15 on field goals and 23-for-27 on extra points in nine games.

Carolina Panthers

On December 7, 2018, Catanzaro signed with the Carolina Panthers following an injury to Graham Gano.[27]

New York Jets (second stint)

On March 15, 2019, Catanzaro signed with the New York Jets.[28] After announcing his retirement on August 11, 2019,[29][30] he was placed on the exempt/left squad list on August 11 and then placed on the reserve/left squad list on August 17.[31] He was released from the reserve/left squad list on July 23, 2020.[32]

New York Giants

Catanzaro signed with the New York Giants on August 1, 2020.[33] He was released on August 17, 2020.[34]

NFL career statistics

Year	Team	GP	Overall FGs					PATs				Kickoffs					Points
			Blk	Lng	FGM	FGA	Pct	XPM	XPA	Pct	Blk	KO	Avg	TB	Ret	Avg
2014	ARI	16	0	51	29	33	87.9	27	27	100.0	0	76	66.6	38	37	26.1	114
2015	ARI	16	0	47	28	31	90.3	53	58	91.4	0	99	65.1	50	49	24.3	137
2016	ARI	16	1	60	21	28	75.0	43	47	91.5	1	83	62.9	52	29	23.1	106
2017	NYJ	16	1	57	25	30	83.3	29	29	100.0	0	71	61.3	45	22	20.7	104
2018	TB	9	0	59	11	15	73.3	23	27	85.2	0	49	63.7	39	10	21.7	56
	CAR	4	0	51	5	5	100.0	7	8	87.5	0	16	62.4	13	3	20.7	22
Total		77	2	60	119	142	83.8	182	196	92.9	1	394	63.9	237	150	23.8	539

References

1. "Chandler Catanzaro chased his dreams, all the way to the NFL". The Greenville News. Retrieved November 1, 2018.
2. "Chandler Catanzaro""247 Sports"
3. "Football | NCAA | Player Stats - washingtonpost.com". stats.washingtonpost.com. Retrieved May 2, 2016.
4. "Cardinals Get 15 Undrafted Rookies". AZCardinals.com. Archived from the original on October 9, 2017. Retrieved May 2, 2016.
5. "Cardinals cut Jay Feely". Retrieved May 2, 2016.
6. "Chargers vs. Cardinals - Box Score - September 8, 2014 - ESPN". ESPN.com. Retrieved February 6, 2016.
7. "Cardinals vs. Giants - Box Score - September 14, 2014 - ESPN". ESPN.com. Retrieved May 2, 2016.
8. "Cardinals Rookie Kickers, 4 FGs, Single Game". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved November 1, 2018.
9. "49ers vs. Cardinals - Box Score - September 21, 2014 - ESPN". ESPN.com. Retrieved February 6, 2016.
10. "Chandler Catanzaro: Game Logs at NFL.com". www.nfl.com. Retrieved February 6, 2016.
11. Sports, Fox. "Catanzaro sets rookie mark with 16th field goal". FOX Sports. Retrieved May 2, 2016.
12. "Rams vs. Cardinals - Box Score - November 9, 2014 - ESPN". ESPN.com. Retrieved May 2, 2016.
13. "Arizona Cardinals' Chandler Catanzaro misses for first time in NFL career - Arizona Sports". Arizona Sports. November 10, 2014. Retrieved May 2, 2016.
14. "Chicago/St. Louis/Arizona Cardinals Single-season Kicking & Punting Leaders | Pro-Football-Reference.com". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved February 6, 2016.
15. "Rams vs. Cardinals - Box Score - October 4, 2015 - ESPN". ESPN.com. Retrieved May 2, 2016.
16. "Long field goals". Pro Football Hall of Fame Official Site. Retrieved November 1, 2018.
17. "Cardinals, Seahawks left in bizarre tie after missing chip-shot field goals". USA TODAY. Retrieved November 1, 2018.
18. Allen, Eric (March 10, 2017). "Jets Sign K Chandler Catanzaro". NewYorkJets.com. Archived from the original on August 13, 2017.
19. "New York Jets at Buffalo Bills - September 10th, 2017". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved September 14, 2017.
20. "Catanzaro's FG leads Jets to wacky 23-20 OT win over Jaguars". USA TODAY. Retrieved November 1, 2018.
21. "Chandler Catanzaro sets Jets record with 57-yard field goal vs. Browns". USA Today. October 8, 2017. Retrieved November 1, 2018.
22. Gantt, Darin (March 14, 2018). "Buccaneers signing kicker Chandler Catanzaro". ProFootballTalk.NBCSports.com.
23. Smith, Scott (March 16, 2018). "Bucs Land New Kicker in Chandler Catanzaro". Buccaneers.com. Archived from the original on April 19, 2018.
24. "Buccaneers' Chandler Catanzaro: Busy day in Week 1 win". CBSSports.com. Retrieved November 1, 2018.
25. Arcia, Gil (October 22, 2018). "Notes and highlights form the Buccaneers 26-23 win over the Browns in OT". Bucsnation.com.
26. Smith, Scott (November 12, 2018). "Bucs Waive Chandler Catanzaro". Buccaneers.com.
27. Hensen, Max (December 7, 2018). "Panthers sign kicker Chandler Catanzaro". Panthers.com.
28. Greenberg, Ethan (March 15, 2019). "Jets Sign Kicker Chandler Catanzaro". NewYorkJets.com.
29. Bergman, Jeremy (August 11, 2019). "Jets kicker Chandler Catanzaro retires; Bertolet signed". NFL. Retrieved November 22, 2019.
30. Greenberg, Ethan (August 11, 2019). "Jets Sign Taylor Bertolet, Chandler Catanzaro Retires". New York Jets. Retrieved November 22, 2019.
31. "New York Jets". NFL. Retrieved November 22, 2019.
32. Bouda, Nate (July 23, 2020). "Jets Release K Chandler Catanzaro From Left Squad List". NFLTradeRumors.co. Retrieved July 23, 2020.
33. Eisen, Michael (August 1, 2020). "Giants sign veteran kicker Chandler Catanzaro". Giants.com. Retrieved August 1, 2020.
34. Eisen, Michael (August 17, 2020). "Giants release kicker Catanzaro, add DT Daylon Mack". Giants.com. Retrieved August 17, 2020.

External links

• Arizona Cardinals bio
• ESPN player profile