TEMPE, Ariz. -- Arizona Cardinals kicker Chad Ryland has had a whirlwind of a last few weeks.
It started when the Cardinals signed the free agent kicker to their practice squad on Oct. 2 with veteran kicker Matt Prater dealing with a left knee issue. Four days later, Ryland kicked a game-winning field goal to beat the San Francisco 49ers. Two weeks later on Monday night, he gave the Cardinals another win with a field goal as time expired to top the Los Angeles Chargers.
"It's been like a blur, the last three weeks," Ryland said. "Everything's been so fast. But no, super, super fortunate. Super thankful to have the opportunities that have been given and just try to make the most of them."
Ryland's wild ride continues Sunday against the Miami Dolphins and will until Prater, who was put on injured reserve on Oct. 15, comes back. It's also allowed Ryland to rewrite his career a bit after a tumultuous rookie season last year with the New England Patriots, who drafted him in the fourth round in 2023. The team cut him on Aug. 27.
"I think when guys go to new places, it's kind of, you know, slate's clean and you make the most of your opportunity," said special teams coordinator Jeff Rodgers. "He's done that and he's kicked off well, he's hit and made kicks, obviously a couple high-profile, pressure type kicks, but the talent has always been there and it's good to see him have success."
But Ryland isn't calling it vindication for his rookie year. He went 16-of-25 on field goals last season for the Patriots, including a game-winner late in the season over the Denver Broncos. It wasn't enough, however, to keep his job after the Patriots went from coach Bill Belichick to coach Jerod Mayo, who brought in competition for Ryland during training camp.
"The people close to me know how I feel about certain things and I'm not real interested in putting any of that on in anything," Ryland said. "There'll be a time and place for that, but certainly not anytime soon."
When Ryland landed in Arizona, Rodgers told his new kicker that he evaluated Ryland coming out of the University of Maryland and knew of his "explosive leg." It also helped that assistant special teams coach Sam Sewell coached Ryland for three years at Eastern Michigan -- before Ryland transferred to Maryland as a graduate student -- giving the Cardinals personal background on Ryland.
When it was time for Ryland to work, Rodgers was impressed when Ryland kicked for the first time as a Cardinal on the Thursday before the 49ers' game and said he was "really impressive" during warm-ups in San Francisco. Coach Jonathan Gannon noticed Ryland "prepared the right way" and described him as "very highly talented."
"He's been a really good addition," Gannon said. "He's a cool cat."
Then came the two game winners in three weeks.
The first, a 35-yarder from the right hashmark to beat the Niners, was a bit of déjà vu for Ryland, who said he had a similar kick last season against the New York Giants that he missed left.
"I had a lot of emotion," Ryland said after that kick. "What a difference a change of scenery makes."
Ryland put aside having his third field goal attempt of that game blocked by the 49ers and returned for a touchdown to redeem himself late in the fourth quarter. For the season, he's 6-for-7 in three games, including making two-of-three from 40 yards or longer.
His game-winning heroics have quickly endeared him to his teammates. Quarterback Kyler Murray said he doesn't interact much with specialists, instead preferring to let them "do their thing."
"Chad coming in on short notice doing his thing and then doing it again, I haven't really known him for long, but very pleased with what's going on," Murray said.
Ryland wasn't sure if he'd get this chance.
When the Cardinals called him in early October, Ryland had been back at his parents' house in Lebanon, Pennsylvania for less than 24 hours. He'd just returned from College Park, Maryland, where he spent a week working out and kicking at the University of Maryland, trying to pass the time during the five weeks he was an unemployed kicker. He'd embarked on a road trip of sorts, with stops at Eastern Michigan, where he was inducted into school's ring of honor, back home in Pennsylvania and in Maryland.
It was during that week that Ryland's career trajectory changed. He had a workout with the Cardinals on Sept. 27 and with the Packers on Oct. 1, and then Arizona signed Ryland to the practice squad on Oct. 2.
"Honestly, it was tough," he said. "I'd be lying if I said it was easy. ... Because you obviously, as an athlete, have that self-belief in yourself that you can play at a certain level and when you're not there and you're watching games on Sunday, it's a lot different than suiting up. But, at the same time, it was something I used to sort of fuel me and keep me going because I knew the time would come."
While he'd have preferred to be on a roster kicking in NFL games, his five weeks away allowed him some rare time with his father, Todd.
The two got to train together like they did in high school, spending about an hour and 15 minutes on a local field, with his dad standing behind the uprights shagging kicks and throwing them back to Chad, who said it was "awesome" getting that time with his dad.
"He doesn't really coach me, per se," Chad said. "My dad's never ever said no to going to the field with me, whether it's baseball, soccer, kicking footballs. So, it's fun. I'm super blessed to have a good support system."