Patriots sign K Forbath, release Folk

The New England Patriots released kicker Nick Folk after he underwent an appendectomy earlier this week, the team announced on Friday. Replacing him on the roster ahead of Sunday's game against the Houston Texans is free agent kicker Kai Forbath.

Forbath, 32, has yet to play in the NFL this season after appearing in three games with the Jacksonville Jaguars in 2018, going 4 of 5 on field-goal attempts. Forbath was the Minnesota Vikings' full-time kicker in 2017. Rookie punter Jake Bailey, who kicked field goals in high school, has handled the Patriots' kickoffs for the past seven weeks.

It is the second time this season the Patriots have needed a replacement at kicker after Stephen Gostkowski (hip) was placed on season-ending injury reserve. They previously signed Mike Nugent but released him after a month, during which he made 5 of 8 field-goal tries and 15 of 16 extra-point attempts. Folk went 7 of 9 on field-goal tries and 3-for-3 on PATs for the Patriots since he was signed Oct. 30.

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