Jake Moody wasn't great his rookie season, but his 2024 efforts have been borderline atrocious, and the numbers back it up.
Sure, wide receiver Deebo Samuel made plenty of headlines when he publicly called out (and nearly accosted) kicker Jake Moody on the field in what turned into a San Francisco 49ers win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers earlier this season.
But, one can probably assume plenty of other Niners players were feeling what Samuel felt.
Moody, a 2023 Round 3 NFL Draft pick out of Michigan who ended up being the first specialist selected that April, had his share of woes during his rookie year, making all but one of his regular-season extra-point attempts but missing four of his 25 field-goal tries, including a devastating would-be game-winning miss at the Cleveland Browns that fans still haven't forgotten.
Then, there were misses in the Super Bowl last February, but let's not go there.
Still, it might've been OK to forgive Moody for "first-year" yips, understanding the pressure he was under to replace a potential Hall of Famer in Robbie Gould, who was nothing short of automatic, especially in the postseason.
However, the second-year kicker has shown zero signs of improvement in 2024.
If anything, Moody has regressed tremendously, and the numbers prove it.
Jake Moody's regression is more proof 49ers whiffed on drafting him
Moody didn't earn any fans when he whiffed on three field-goal tries during that Bucs game, but a critical miss against the Miami Dolphins in Week 16 might have cost him the needed support from head coach Kyle Shanahan, too.
Just look at the below:
Kyle Shanahan was animated on the sideline after Jake Moody's miss 😬 pic.twitter.com/unDKnQoLzr
— 49ers on NBCS (@NBCS49ers) December 22, 2024
One might conclude even Shanahan has had enough with the kicker's inconsistencies, and the numbers don't give any reason to assume otherwise.
Whereas Moody made 84 percent of his field goals a season ago, 2024 has led to a disastrous 23-of-30 line for a 76.7 conversion percentage.
That's 27th out of 34 kickers who have appeared in at least five games this season.
Two years into his rookie contract, it's nevertheless hard to see San Francisco retaining any faith in the former third-round draftee, especially knowing the kicker's inconsistencies have led directly to frustrations within the locker room.
Should Moody be shown the door this offseason, perhaps it'll be a valuable lesson for the 49ers to not use high draft capital on kickers ever again.