The Los Angeles Rams are changing kickers, with Harrison Mevis set to make his NFL debut on Sunday in place of Joshua Karty.
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The Rams (6-2) are not releasing Karty despite his NFL-high eight field goals or extra points that have been missed or blocked this season, coach Sean McVay said Friday.
But Los Angeles will have a new kicker and a new long snapper when it travels to face the San Francisco 49ers (6-3). Jake McQuaide, the Rams’ long snapper from 2011 to 2020, is returning to take over for Alex Ward.
Karty and the Rams’ placekicking unit have struggled all season, and the mistakes played a major role in both of their losses.
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McVay has been careful not to blame Karty solely for the unit’s failures, but the second-year pro apparently deserved enough of the blame for the Rams to bench him. Karty has missed three field goal attempts and had two blocked, while two of his three unsuccessful extra points were blocked — more than the rest of the NFL combined.
The Rams signed Mevis and McQuaide to their practice squad earlier this week. The kicking competition will be re-evaluated on Monday, McVay said.
Mevis was an All-American in 2021 during his successful college career at Missouri, where he became famous as the “The Thiccer Kicker” for his comparative bulk. But he hadn’t cracked an NFL roster since Carolina signed him as an undrafted free agent in 2024.
The Rams announced they have signed K Harrison Mevis to the practice squad 🦵 pic.twitter.com/08VU5vykBe
— FOX Sports: NFL (@NFLonFOX) November 6, 2025
Mevis played for the Birmingham Stallions of the UFL last season and made 20 of his 21 field goal attempts before going to training camp with the New York Jets, who gave their job to Nick Folk.
McQuaide has also returned to the Rams after Ward occasionally struggled to get the ball to the Rams’ holders with proper lace placement. Blackburn and McVay believe the Rams have fixed the blocking issues that led to Karty’s earlier blocked kicks.
Karty was the Rams’ sixth-round draft pick out of Stanford in 2024, and he performed decently as a rookie. He went 29 of 34 on field goal attempts, but missed four extra point attempts.
Mevis would be the 11th kicker to attempt a field goal for the Rams during McVay’s nine seasons in charge.
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Quarterback Brock Purdy will miss his sixth straight start for the San Francisco 49ers with a toe injury, but could be available in a backup role on Sunday against the Rams.
Purdy has been limited in practice the past few weeks and has gotten some time with the starters. Coach Kyle Shanahan is still waiting to see whether he will feel good enough to suit up in a backup role.
“We’ll see where he is this Saturday compared to a week ago and knowing each week’s a little bit different and seeing how much better he has gotten,” Shanahan said.
Mac Jones will once again get the start in his place for a key division showdown. Jones is 5-2 as a starter this season in place of Purdy, who initially hurt his toe in the season opener and re-injured it in a Week 4 loss to Jacksonville after missing the previous two games.
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