Patriots trying out several kickers after Sunday's loss to the Giants

The New England Patriots worked out several specialists on Tuesday afternoon, as the struggles of rookie kicker Chad Ryland continue.

Ryland missed a game-tying, 35-yard field goal against the New York Giants on Sunday, in what was a microcosm of his shaky season. He has gone 12-of-18 on field goal attempts and he has made all 14 of his extra points.

The group of specialists included kickers B. T. Potter, Henry Brown, Matthew Wright, Parker White and John Parker Romo, as noted by Aaron Wilson, who covers the NFL and the Texans for TV station KPRC in Houston. Matthew McCrane was also in on a visit.

New England is trying to find an answer at the position with Ryland in a bit of a slump.

Sunday’s game could be make-or-break for Ryland, assuming he gets the start. If anything, the recent impromptu specialist search should light a fire under the rookie fourth-round draft pick.

Welcome back, quarterback Will Grier

The Patriots are re-signing veteran quarterback Will Grier to their practice squad less than a week after cutting him from the main roster. ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported the news on Tuesday.

Grier was believed to be in the mix to potentially start for the Patriots with Mac Jones' struggles continuing. Bailey Zappe also hasn’t done enough behind the scenes to prove he’s worthy of the starting job.

Even if Grier has not been the answer at quarterback, he at least offered something different than the team was seeing with Jones and Zappe under center. But those hopes were nixed after head coach Bill Belichick said the journeyman backup had some catching up to do in the offense. Not long after that comment was uttered, Grier was released from the roster.

Now that he’s back in the mix, he can continue competing for an opportunity to be elevated from the practice squad back to the main roster. It might seem like a long-shot hope with only six games left in the regular season, but given the ongoing struggles for the Patriots at quarterback, it shouldn’t be considered out of the question.

Malik Cunningham's unique skill set put to use

One of the biggest questions with the Patriots this season has been their strange utilization of rookie Malik Cunningham.

He took snaps at both quarterback and wide receiver during the preseason. In Week 6, ahead of the Patriots’ game against the Las Vegas Raiders, he was elevated to the main roster as the No. 2 quarterback behind Mac Jones. He recently said, however, that he hasn’t been given a single practice rep at quarterback since his preparations for that game.

What in the world is going on? Is Cunningham a quarterback or receiver?

Belichick commented on the Patriots’ strange approach when it comes to Cunningham’s development. “He’s different than probably anyone else on our roster, so he’s been handled differently,” the head coach told reporters on Wednesday.

Patriots offensive coordinator Bill O’Brien recently talked about how hard it is to play both quarterback and receiver, which raises the question as to why the Patriots are making Cunningham do both.

It’s hard to put faith in the team’s ability to develop quarterbacks, particularly after the way Jones’ career trajectory crashed and burned in New England.

At this point, Cunningham playing at quarterback feels more like a pipe dream for fans fed up with the same disappointing reruns of Jones and Zappe.

Report: Belichick is highest-paid coach in U.S.

Belichick’s future might be in doubt with the Patriots but his bank account isn’t.

Sportico released a report on Tuesday ranking the highest-paid coaches across all sports in the United States — professional and college level — and Belichick topped the list by an exceptional margin.

From a Patriots perspective, the timing of the report is interesting considering the team is an absolute mess right now. They are currently on the verge of back-to-back losing seasons with a 2-9 record, which is the worst in the AFC. But Belichick reportedly towers above all the rest in pay with a projected $25-million annual salary.

Denver Broncos head coach Sean Payton is second behind Belichick with a reported $18-million salary.

With the Patriots likely headed toward a rebuilding project and the very real possibility of Belichick coaching elsewhere next season, if at all, it’ll be worth monitoring to see if his salary changes in the future.

This article originally appeared on The Providence Journal: Patriots trying out several kickers after Sunday's loss to the Giants