The New Orleans Saints have released long-serving kicker Garrett Hartley following his performance against the St Louis Rams on Sunday.
Hartley, who spent six seasons with the team, missed two field goals in the Saints' surprise 27-16 defeat to the Rams, a display that proved to be the final straw for head coach Sean Payton.
Hartley had made just 22 of his 30 field goal attempts this season, coming in at a career-low conversion rate of 73%, while his job had already come under threat this year when he missed four out of six kicks earlier in the campaign.
The 27-year-old remains a part of the Saints' history having kicked a 40-yard field goal in overtime to win the 2009-10 NFC Championship Game before becoming the only player to make three kicks of more than 40 yards in the Super Bowl as the Saints won the Vince Lombardi Trophy.
Early reports suggest that the Saints will turn to veteran kicker Shayne Graham to replace Hartley, while Neil Rackers, Derek Dimke, Brandon McManus and John Potter all worked out with the team last month.
Barney Corkhill
