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<\/p>\nOn September 12, 2025, San Francisco 49ers\u00a0insider Matt Maiocco reported the 49ers held a tryout with punter\u00a0Matthew Hayball.<\/p>\n
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But that\u2019s\u00a0reportedly not because\u00a0the 49ers are looking for a replacement for starting punter\u00a0Thomas Morstead. They actually held the tryout for the benefit of 49ers wide receiver\u00a0Skyy Moore.<\/p>\n
You see, on Sunday September 14, 2025, the 49ers are facing the\u00a0New Orleans Saints. The Saints\u2019 punter,\u00a0Kai Kroeger, is a left-footed punter, and so is Hayball.<\/p>\n
The 49ers wanted to get Moore some experience fielding punts from a left-footed punter ahead of the game on Saturday.<\/p>\n
Interestingly enough, Hayball was also the Saints\u2019 starting punter last season and spent all of the 2025 preseason with New Orleans as well.<\/p>\n
The Saints just cut Hayball on August 6, 2025. Maybe the 49ers could take advantage of the fresh ending to that relationship and gain some special teams intel about the Saints too, about coaching and who Kroeger is as a player.<\/p>\n
The 49ers are likely taking this opportunity to bring in Hayball because they want to put Moore in the best position to succeed.<\/p>\n
The\u00a0Kansas City Chiefs\u00a0benched Moore as their punt returner back when he was a rookie in 2022 after he lost three fumbles. In his 49ers debut against the\u00a0Seattle Seahawks, he muffed another punt, though he was able to recover it for no gain.<\/p>\n
Moore\u2019s speed and return ability has always made him a promising\u00a0NFL player. He ran a 4.40 40-yard dash at the 2022 NFL Combine.<\/p>\n