Robbie Gould picked an inopportune time to have his worst performance of the 2020 season in his team's 20-12 win over the Arizona Cardinals on Saturday, but it doesn't sound like the 49ers will be holding it against him when they make a decision on his future.
Gould was uncharacteristically erratic against the Cardinals, missing field goal attempts from 41 and 37 yards as well as an extra point. His misses kept the Cardinals within one score on their final drive, leaving the game in doubt until the 49ers defense shut the door with 20 seconds to play. Gould had been having a strong year to that point, connecting on 34 of 35 extra points and 19 of 21 field goals with his lone misses coming on attempts of more than 50 yards.
Gould's rough outing against the Cardinals came days before the 49ers need to decide whether or not to pick up the option in his contract for the 2021 season. Gould, 38, is currently in year two of a four-year, $19 million deal he signed with the 49ers in 2019, but the final two years of his contract are option years. The 49ers must make a decision on those options before their season finale against the Seattle Seahawks on January 3, and if they decide to keep Gould around, $2.25 million of the $4.5 million in Gould's 2021 salary will become guaranteed.
It remains to be seen what the 49ers will do with Gould in the coming days, but 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan told reporters after the win over the Cardinals that the team will be looking at the full picture with Gould rather than what he did on Saturday. Needless to say, the full picture looks much more positive.
"You've got to look at the body of work with Robbie, and Robbie's been unbelievable since's he's been here for us," Shanahan said. "He's had an unbelievable year this year. Yeah it was tough on those situations, and Robbie will be harder on himself than anyone, but no. He's played too much football in his career and he's played too much football for us to let one game decide who he is."
Gould would be one of a large number of 49ers players who would hit free agency after the season if the team decided to part ways. Will the 49ers decide to keep the usually reliable veteran around to solidify their kicking situation? Or will they opt to save some money in a year in which there won't be much cash to go around? The answer will be known in the coming days.