Sam Sloman Explained

Sam Sloman
Position:Placekicker
Birth Date:19 September 1997
Birth Place:Roswell, Georgia, U.S.
Height Ft:5
Height In:8
Weight Lb:205
High School:Pace Academy
(Atlanta, Georgia)
College:Miami (OH) (2016–2019)
Draftyear:2020
Draftround:7
Draftpick:248
Pastteams:
Highlights:
  • Second-team All-MAC (2019)
Statleague:NFL
Statlabel1:Field goals
Statvalue1:10
Statlabel2:Field goal attempts
Statvalue2:13
Statlabel3:Longest field goal
Statvalue3:47
Pfr:S/SlomSa00

Samuel Cole Sloman (born September 19, 1997) is an American football placekicker who is a free agent. He played college football at Miami University, and in 2019 he made 86.7% of his field goal attempts (leading all kickers in the nation). He was selected in the seventh round (248th overall) of the 2020 NFL draft by the Los Angeles Rams, and has also played for the Tennessee Titans.

Early years

His parents are Jay and Judi Sloman.[1] Sloman's hometown is Roswell, Georgia.

For high school, Sloman attended Pace Academy ('16), in the Buckhead area of Atlanta, Georgia.[2] He earned two letters in football, and four letters in soccer. He did not start to play football until he was a junior.[3] As a senior in football he connected on 20-of-23 kicks, with a long of 53 yards, and also nailed all 51 extra points. He was a two-time All-State kicker, and a 2015 MaxPreps First Team All-American.

College career

Sloman attended Miami University in Ohio ('20), majoring in kinesiology. During his career with the Miami Redhawks football team, Sloman completed 49 of his 62 field goal attempts for 79%.[4] On extra point attempts, he made 112-for-115 for 97.4%. During his senior year in 2019, he made 86.7% of his field goal attempts (leading his conference, and leading all kickers in the country with 30 or more attempts), went 11-for-14 from beyond 40 yards and was 4-for-5 on field goal attempts longer than 50 yards (with a long of 53 yards).[5] [6]

Sloman earned Second-Team All-Mid-American Conference honors, and was named Second-Team All-America by The Athletic.[7] He ranks second in field goals (49) and extra points (112) and third in percentage (.790) all-time for Miami. Lance Zierlein of nfl.com described him as: "Stocky with plenty of fire in his belly."[8] Sloman is Jewish, and his teammates nicknamed him the "Kosher Cannon."[9] [10] [11]

Professional career

Los Angeles Rams

Sloman was drafted by the Los Angeles Rams with the 248th pick in the seventh round of the 2020 NFL draft, even though kickers are rarely selected in the NFL Draft.[12] [13] The Rams were impressed by his past performance in the clutch, with Rams senior personnel executive Brian Xanders noting: "In the second half or overtime during the last two years, he went 27 out of 29. So when the score is tight or it’s getting close to the end of the game, he’s been clutch."[14] Xanders added that he liked Sloman's angle of approach, similar to a powerful golf swing, and "he's gotten better every year [...] He's a powerful guy, he's a weather kicker, and he's a competitor. He just wants to take everybody's job." Sloman was the first Miami University kicker to be drafted in the NFL, and its 40th player.

On July 28, he signed a four-year, $3.37 million contract. He was named the Rams' starting kicker, beating out fellow rookies Lirim Hajrullahu and Austin MacGinnis.[15] Asked whether he was nervous about kicking in front of no fans at SoFi Stadium, he said: "It's not going to be weird for me not having fans at the games. I played plenty of games in college [at Miami] with not many people there."[16] After playing in the team's first seven games, Sloman was waived on October 27.[17] He had converted 8-of-11 field goal attempts, with a long of 42, and was 18-for-21 on extra point attempts.[18]

Tennessee Titans

On November 24, 2020, Sloman was signed to the Tennessee Titans' practice squad.[19] Following an injury to Stephen Gostkowski, he was elevated to the active roster on January 2, 2021, for the team's week 17 game against the Houston Texans, and reverted to the practice squad after the game.[20] He hit all five extra point attempts and both field goals, including the game-winner that deflected off the right upright from 37 yards away as time expired, with which the Titans won the AFC South division.[21] [22] [23] He was released on January 12.[24]

Pittsburgh Steelers

On July 1, 2021, the Pittsburgh Steelers signed Sloman to a one-year deal.[25] He was waived on August 17, 2021.[26] He re-signed to their practice squad on November 27, 2021.[27] [28] He signed a reserve/future contract with the Steelers on January 18, 2022.[29] He was waived on May 16, 2022.[30]

San Francisco 49ers

On October 12, 2022, Sloman was signed to the San Francisco 49ers practice squad.[31] He was released on October 18.[32]

Vegas Vipers

On April 4, 2023, Sloman signed with the Vegas Vipers of the XFL.[33] The Vipers folded when the XFL and United States Football League merged to create the United Football League (UFL).[34]

NFL career statistics

|-style="text-align:center;"! rowspan="2"|2020 !! LAR| 7 || 8 || 11 || 72.7 || 3 || 42 || 18 || 21 || 85.7 || 37 || 64.5 || 22 || 42|- style="text-align:center;"! TEN| 1 || 2 || 2 || 100.0 || 0 || 47 || 5 || 5 || 100.0 || 0 || 0 || 0 || 11|-! colspan="2"| Career !! 8 !! 10 !! 13 !! 76.9 !! 3 !! 47 !! 23 !! 26 !! 88.6 !! 37 !! 64.5 !! 22 !! 53|}

See also

External links

Notes and References

  1. https://miamiredhawks.com/sports/football/roster/sam-sloman/5819 "2019 Football Roster; Sam Sloman,"
  2. Web site: April 28, 2020 . Pace Academy Alumnus Samuel Sloman Joins Los Angeles Rams . May 18, 2023 . Pace Academy.
  3. Web site: Sam Sloman (K): Bio, News, Stats & more . Tennessee Titans.
  4. Web site: Schmetzer . Mark . April 27, 2020 . Sloman first Miami kicker to be drafted . Journal-News.
  5. Web site: Howman . David . February 12, 2020 . Five college kickers to know in the 2020 NFL draft class . Blogging The Boys.
  6. Web site: Samuel Sloman College Stats . College Football at Sports-Reference.com.
  7. News: Clark . Dave . April 25, 2020 . Sam Sloman, Miami University RedHawks kicker, drafted by Rams in seventh round . . April 26, 2020.
  8. Web site: Larry Brake . April 26, 2020 . Sam Sloman is the next LA Rams kicker added to the roster . Fansided.
  9. Web site: Williams . Eric D. . September 7, 2020 . Rams believe rookie Samuel Sloman built to handle pressure; Miami of Ohio product effective in second half of games in college . Sports Illustrated LA Rams News, Analysis and More.
  10. Web site: Cohen . David R. . February 17, 2016 . Football Signings: Sloman to Miami, Gothard to Penn . Atlanta Jewish Times.
  11. Web site: Nate Bloom . October 9, 2020 . Jewish NFL players; Film tells story of Chicago 7 . St. Louis Jewish Light . February 4, 2021 . March 10, 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20210310021001/https://www.stljewishlight.com/features/jewish-nfl-players-film-tells-story-of-chicago-7/article_82014a4c-0a5d-11eb-9086-3b55429b812d.html . dead .
  12. Web site: Pfister . Brady . March 6, 2020 . Miami football players flex skills for pro scouts . Oxford Observer.
  13. News: DaSilva . Cameron . April 25, 2020 . Rams draft kicker Sam Sloman at No. 248 overall . Rams Wire . April 26, 2020.
  14. Web site: Cameron DaSilva . May 29, 2020 . This stat shows just how clutch Rams K Sam Sloman was in college . USA Today.
  15. Web site: Smith, Michael David . September 4, 2020 . Rookie Sam Sloman wins Rams' kicker competition . Pro Football Talk . NBC Sports.
  16. Web site: Arthur . Kenneth . October 28, 2020 . Re-living Sam Sloman's best moments as the Los Angeles Rams kicker . Turf Show Times.
  17. Web site: Arthur . Kenneth . October 27, 2020 . Rams transactions: Sam Sloman released, Kai Forbath to take over at kicker . October 27, 2020 . Turf Show Times . SB Nation.
  18. Web site: Sam Sloman Stats . November 25, 2020 . Pro Football Reference.
  19. Web site: Wyatt, Jim . November 24, 2020 . Titans Place LB Jayon Brown and LT Ty Sambrailo on Injured Reserve While Making Several Other Roster Moves . Tennessee Titans.
  20. Web site: Moraitis . Mike . January 2, 2021 . Titans activate Brett Kern from COVID-19 list among 3 roster moves . January 4, 2021 . Titanswire.
  21. Web site: Kamil . Kayla . January 8, 2021 . Miami football alums excel during pandemic-ridden NFL season . Oxford Observer.
  22. Web site: Organ . Mike . January 3, 2021 . Sam Sloman had not met all of his Titans teammates before making winning kick against Texans . The Tennessean.
  23. Web site: Kayanja . Ian . January 3, 2021 . Sloman Makes a Name for Himself With Game-Winning Kick . Sports Illustrated Tennessee Titans News, Analysis and More.
  24. News: January 12, 2021 . Samuel Sloman: Cut from practice squad . CBSSports.com . February 17, 2021.
  25. News: Varley, Teresa . July 1, 2021 . Steelers sign Sloman . Steelers.com . July 2, 2021.
  26. Web site: Varley, Teresa . August 17, 2021 . Steelers reduce roster to 85 players . Steelers.com . August 18, 2021 . August 18, 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20210818004104/https://www.steelers.com/news/steelers-reduce-roster-to-85-players . dead .
  27. Web site: Varley, Teresa . November 27, 2021 . Steelers make moves, place two on IR . Steelers.com.
  28. Web site: Varley, Teresa . December 13, 2021 . Steelers make multiple roster moves . Steelers.com.
  29. Web site: Varley, Teresa . January 18, 2022 . Steelers sign 12 to Reserve/Future contracts . Steelers.com.
  30. Web site: Varley, Teresa . May 16, 2022 . Steelers sign four players . Steelers.com.
  31. Web site: October 12, 2022 . 49ers Sign Tevin Coleman to Active Roster; Release QB . January 28, 2023 . 49ers.com.
  32. Web site: October 18, 2022 . 49ers Sign Benkert, Hollman to the Practice Squad . January 28, 2023 . 49ers.com.
  33. Web site: XFL Transactions . April 5, 2023 . www.xfl.com . en.
  34. Web site: Seifert . Kevin . January 1, 2024 . Newly formed United Football League sets 8 markets, tabs coaches . January 15, 2024 . ESPN.com.