NBA legend Allen Iverson might have something to say about practice, but for San Francisco 49ers kicker Jake Moody, practice reps might be the only thing saving him a roster spot for 2025.
The embattled kicker was, putting it bluntly, atrocious down the stretch last season, rivaling former Tampa Bay Buccaneers draft bust of a kicker in Roberto Aguayo in missed attempts in a single year. And while Moody's blues were experienced after returning from a high-ankle sprain suffered earlier in 2024, it's still hard to excuse the litany of gaffes that fully count in the stat book.
The Niners brought in competition for Moody earlier this offseason, signing journeyman specialist Greg Joseph.
But, at least early on, Moody has a proverbial leg up in the competition, and a performance from day one of mandatory minicamp proved it, according to NBC Sports Bay Area's Matt Maiocco:
#49ers kicker update from minicamp: Jake Moody, showing his new shortened approach, made all kicks from 27, 32, 37, 47, 52 and 55 yards
— Matt Maiocco (@MaioccoNBCS) June 10, 2025
According to The Athletic's Vic Tafur, Moody did have a miss but went 6-of-7 on field-goal tries overall, trying out the shorter two-step approach instead of his previous three. This was the simple change the former Michigan specialist employed during the offseason, which supposedly will assist with accuracy at the expense of some distance.
The 2023 third-round draft pick saw his made field-goal percentage drop from a respectable-if-unspectacular 84 percent that season to a lowly 70.6 mark the following year, which opened up a slew of questions about his immediate and long-term futures in the Bay Area, particularly with new special teams coordinator Brant Boyer in town.
While those questions are still far away from being fully answered, the early indications are that Moody has at least corrected the course.
Now, whether or not that'll translate over into actual in-game success beyond practices is another question.
We are talking about "practice," after all.