It is often questionable when a talent who is considered to be one of the best at what he does is overlooked by all the franchises in his sport. Such is the story of Kai Forbath. America’s top college kicker of 2009 was passed on by all franchises in the 2011 NFL Draft. He was eventually picked up by the Dallas Cowboys shortly after as an untraded free agent.
Kai excelled at soccer and football in high school before settling for the former in college. His time at UCLA earned him much-needed recognition with his performances, which included an unforgettable 54-yard field goal in a game against Oregon in his freshman year. He joined the Minnesota Vikings as a replacement player in 2016.
Kai Forbath’s bio
The man from Santa Monica, California was born on September 2, 1987. An avid sports fan in high school, he got a good track record during his time at Notre Dame High School in Sherman Oaks. Here, he displayed good accuracy from the field, making 26 of 33 attempts and a total of 213 points in his last two years at school. He also scored a scoring goal from 57 yards.
In 2006, Kai Forbath was selected to participate in that year’s edition of the United States Army All-American Bowl as well as the CaliFlorida Bowl. In 2006, the prestigious Rivals.com named Forbath the best prospect for on-site investment in the country.
He would eventually go to the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) in 2006. In 2007, the youngster left behind the wheel of a flyer after completing his 30 field goal attempts and 25 field attempts, recording 105 points . At least 5 of his goals, he became the first player in UCLA history to tally that many goals from 50 yards in a single campaign. In his sophomore season, he received the All-Pacific-10 first-team trophy by sinking 19 of his 22 field goal attempts, especially since the last 13 came back-to-back. During his junior season, Kai Forbath received the Lou Groza Award which officially recognized him as the best player in college basketball.
By the time the 2011 NFL Draft rolled around, Kai was the No. 2 placekicking prospect in the draft. However, the drill was not good for placekickers as only one player in that position was selected that year. A few months later, however, on August 2, the Dallas Cowboys called. Due to the long-term injury he had at the time of signing, Forbath was immediately placed on the non-football injury list. He never played for or practiced with the team and was suspended on April 16, 2012.
A day later, he entered the books of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers where he played for the team in their preseason before joining the Washington Redskins on October 9, 2012.
It was with the Redskins that he made his NFL career debut with a 50-yard screamer in his first game against the Minnesota Vikings. In the last week of December, Forbath set the NFL on fire as the first NFL rookie to convert 17 straight.
After signing a $1.5 million right of first refusal contract with the team on April 15, 2015, he was released by the Redskins five months later.
He joined the New Orleans Saints on October 19, 2015, to replace the faltering Zach Hocker. He quickly began to assert himself in the team with great performances. Those included a personal-best 57 yards in Week 12 against the Houston Rockets. It was the third longest goal in Saints history. He permanently left the team on September 6, 2016, and was replaced by untrained rookie rookie Wil Lutz.
He signed a one-year contract with the Minnesota Vikings in November 2016. Kai Forbath had some great games, including converting six goals for a win over the Baltimore Ravens in Week 7 of the 2017 season. game, he became the third Vikings player to achieve the feat in their history. He was rewarded by the team with a new contract on March 20, 2018.
Kai Forbath height, weight and body measurements
According to many reputable sources, the kicker stands at a height of 1.80m (5ft 11in). It also maintains a gate weight of 89 kg (197 lb).
Other Facts About Kai Forbath
- Forbath’s middle name is August, coinciding one month ahead of his birth month – September.
- In high school, Kai Forbath was also a bettor and was even a member of the Los Angeles Times All-Star Team for his efforts.
- He’s a real athlete. In high school, Kai also played soccer. He was involved in the national Premier football league.
- Although he was let go by the Washington Redskins, he left the franchise with the second most accurate kicking record on the team. He converted 87% (60 of 69) of his field goal attempts with the team.