Some NFL players dream of making the Super Bowl for years without ever coming close. Former Birmingham Stallions “Thiccer kicker,” Harrison Mevis, came this-close to almost making Super Bowl LX, and he did it in less than 90 days.
On Sunday evening, the Seattle Seahawks triumphed over the Los Angeles Rams in an epic 31-27 battle. Together, the two teams combined for a total of 875 offensive yards. For Mevis, who has only been with L. A. since November 5th, it was an incredible journey from the UFL to the heights of NFL stardom in an unbelievably short period of time.
Both quarterbacks, Sam Darnold and Matthew Stafford, played such outstanding games that either team could have won. Recording 374 yards with three touchdowns, Stafford cemented his bid for MVP, while Darnold played his best-ever game with 346 yards and three scores. The third quarter produced a total of four touchdowns, with each team scoring twice. Mevis did everything the team asked of him, kicking two field goals, a 44-yarder and a stunning 50-yard boot, plus three extra points.
With 25 seconds left on the clock and no timeouts, Stafford launched a 21-yard pass to Puka Nacua, who dove for the sidelines, but was hauled down just inside, allowing the clock to run out.
Mevis Shines In His NFL Debut
Nailing 20 of 21 field goals in 2025, Mevis’s only UFL season was enough to bring him to the attention of several NFL teams. He was named the UFL Player of the Week for his gutsy three-field goal performance in Week 7 that included an impressive 52-yarder. Snapped up by the New York Jets during the preseason, Mevis had a solid tryout, but was waived in favor of 41-year-old NFL veteran Nick Folk during final roster cuts.
Two months later, the Rams signed Mevis to their practice squad as competition for the team’s struggling kicker, Joshua Karty, who converted 10 out of 15 field goals. Three days later, he was activated as the week’s designated kicker.
In his Week 10 debut for the Rams, Mevis wasn’t asked to kick a field goal, but he converted all six extra points in a 42-20 victory over the San Francisco 49ers. The following week, he connected on three of three extra points in the Rams’ 21-19 division win over the Seattle Seahawks.
Despite not having kicked a field goal, Mevis’s successful two-week tryout convinced Rams’ head coach Sean McVay to appoint him the team’s kicker. Mevis finished the regular season converting 12 of 13 field goals and all 39 extra points.
Mevis Shines In The NFL Playoffs
In the Los Angeles Rams’ 34-31 victory over the Carolina Panthers, Mevis converted two field goals and four of four extra points. Just before halftime, he connected on a 46-yard field goal to give the Rams a 17-14 lead. Mevis delivered his second field goal from 42 yards during the third quarter to increase the Rams’ lead to 20-17.
But it was Mevis’s clutch performance in overtime the following week against the Chicago Bears that really sealed his reputation as a reliable NFL star kicker. Nailing a clutch 42-yard field goal, Mevis split the uprights, for a 20-17 overtime victory that would send the Rams to the Conference Championship. Earlier in the game, he connected on a 32-yard field goal along with two extra points.
Although the Rams’ season ended after such a strong and promising effort, there is no question that the team has found its kicker. Mevis joins the ranks of other successful spring kickers, Dallas Cowboys three-time Pro Bowl kicker Brandon Aubrey, as well as the Detroit Lions’ kicker Jake Bates and Andre Szmyt of the Cleveland Browns.
As the NFL season draws to a close, it won’t be long before the 2026 UFL season gets underway. NFL teams will be watching for the next breakout star to sign to the roster.
2 Comments
by Frank Dux
When will the UFL develop a QB that will break out in the NFL? It’s a nice story to see a few PK make the NFL, but isn’t spring football supposed to develop other positions too?
by Johnny the Angry Fuzzball
That’s a lot more difficult task.
The main problem is that kicking is so much more of a transferable skill than most other positions. If you can kick a 60-yard field goal in the UFL, you can do it in the NFL. You don’t need a lot of coaching for that.
With quarterbacks, it’s quite the opposite. The quickest way to get into the NFL regular season is as an injury replacement. Those kinds of players need to have knowledge of a coach’s playbook and ability to play at a starting level. That’s why you see 44-year-old Philip Rivers and 40-something year old Josh Johnson still getting signed. For some reason or another, the UFL isn’t giving QBs the experience and learning they need to break through as NFL caliber talent. I’m surprised Matt Corral has stayed as long as he has, but he may realize his NFL days are probably done at this point.