Matthew Wright Says His Relationship With Danny Smith Keeps Pulling Him Back to the Steelers
The signing of Matthew Wright meant one thing and one thing only, the Steelers wanted an extra leg for training camp and the preseason. Wright is a familiar face for the Steelers as this marks his fourth stint with the team. The main reason that Wright keeps coming back to the Steelers despite them having a solidified kicker in place is special teams coach Danny Smith.
“The relationship with Danny (Smith) is great,” Wright told Alan Saunders of Steelers Now. “I mean, Christian (Kuntz) and (Chris) Boswell have been here for a while so I know them real well. Mostly, Danny, the familiarity, he knows that I can kick well and I know that I like it here and that I will be able to do well here.”
Of course, the Steelers have Chris Boswell on the roster as their starting placekicker and he is not going anywhere, anytime soon but the chance of being on a team and showcasing his talents for coaches while gaining knowledge and tips is all that Wright needs to keep coming back. He used his past chances with the Steelers for other job opportunities and will likely do it again this season.
“There’s just something to being on a team, just knowing that I am everyday snap, hold, kick in front of coaches and that I am working everyday,” Wright said.
While every kicker is different in regard to preparation, routine, etc., Wright sees a benefit in kicking next to Boswell as he is one of the best and most seasoned kickers in the game.
“Every kicker is different,” Wright said. “Boswell has his approach. It is vastly different than like Harrison Butker in Kansas City but obviously they both been doing it for such a long time, there is stuff that I can take from him.”
According to Wright, while there is tips and tricks that he can learn from Boswell, it is also bad to study another kicker too closely as one may try to mimic the other guys when that is not a good thing to do.
“I try to not watch him kick sometimes because I might try to mimic something that he does so there is like a certain line where I try to learn from him on certain things like mentality,” Wright said. “It’s great to kick next to him, too, because obviously he is a great kicker so it makes me try to hone in and be better.”
From his rookie season until now, Wright has became a more complete kicker with his range being much further in 2024 than it was in 2019. He has worked on his body and leg every year and it has led him to multiple job opportunities.
“I weigh like 30 more pounds, I was real skinny back then,” Wright said. “I am just focusing more on it over the years, just trying to kick the ball harder honestly. Just getting better every year.”
Regardless, Wright’s fourth stint with the Steelers will end at the end of training camp but with his ability, a kicker-needy team will likely pick him up at some point this season.
8 • Matthew Wright, Kicker, UCF
5-foot-11, 174 pounds, 28 years old, 5th Season
Acquired: The Steelers signed Matthew Wright signed a one-year contract with the Pittsburgh Steelers on April 10, 2024, marking his fourth stint with the team.
Last season: Last season, Matthew Wright was cut by three different teams, including the Panthers, Patriots, and San Francisco 49ers at various points of the season. Wright served as a backup for both the Steelers and Kansas City Chiefs last year, making 83.3% of his kicks with a long of 59 yards and going 15 for 15 on extra points.
Career: Matthew Wright originally signed with Pittsburgh as an undrafted free agent in 2019 before spending time with the XFL’s Tampa Bay Vipers. He came back to the Steel City in 2020, connecting on each of his four field goal attempts and seven extra point kicks.
In 2021, Wright played in 14 games as Jacksonville’s primary placekicker. He made a career-high 21 of his 24 field goal attempts while going 13 of 15 on extra point attempts.
In 2022, Wright kicked for the Steelers and the Chiefs. In four games with the Steelers, he completed 12 of his 14 field goal attempts. For the Chiefs he completed three of his four attempts.
Over his first five seasons in the NFL, Wright has kicked for four different teams in regular season games. He has appeared in 24 games, making 40 of his 47 career field goal attempts and 35 of his 37 extra point attempts.
| Year | Team | GP | FGM | FGA | FG% | XPA | XP | XP % |
| 2019 | PIT | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 |
| 2020 | PIT | 3 | 4 | 4 | 100 | 7 | 7 | 100 |
| 2021 | JAX | 14 | 21 | 24 | 87.5 | 13 | 15 | 86.7 |
| 2022 | PIT | 4 | 12 | 14 | 85.7 | 7 | 7 | 100 |
| 2022 | KC | 2 | 3 | 4 | 75.0 | 8 | 8 | 100 |
| 2023 | CAR | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 |
College: Matthew Wright, a Pennsylvania native, played his collegiate football at the University of Central Florida. After being on a redshirt during his freshman season, Wright became the Knights full-time placekicker for the next four seasons.
In 2017, Wright was the primary kicker for the undefeated UFC Knights team that claimed a National Championship despite not making the title game or being ranked above tenth in the AP Poll.
Wright was a two-time second-team All-AAC honoree with those awards coming in 2017 and 2018.
Wright holds the UCF school records for most career points (375), most field goals made (55), most extra points (212, including 153 consecutive made PATs), tied for the best career kicking percentage (77.4%), and second-best career extra point percentage (98.5%).
| Year | FGM | FGA | Percentage | Long |
| 2014 | 0 | 0 | – | 0 |
| 2015 | 13 | 17 | 76.5 | 48 |
| 2016 | 17 | 22 | 77.3 | 50 |
| 2017 | 13 | 18 | 72.2 | 47 |
| 2018 | 12 | 14 | 72.2 | 46 |
Salary cap and future: Matthew Wright is signed with the team through the end of this season but will be a player that they release prior to the season. His contract is worth $1.06 million but none of it is guaranteed so that means when the team releases him, they will not incur any dead money penalties.
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