The New England Patriots have been able to rely on Stephen Gostkowski as their kicker since 2006. But with Gostkowski heading to injured reserve, ex-Los Angeles Chargers kicker Younghoe Koo is trying out with the Patriots per Adam Schefter.

On Wednesday, the Patriots chose to place their longtime placekicker on injured reserve due to season-ending hip surgery. Thus, his injury has prompted New England to search for a replacement for the rest of the season.

One of the early candidates to fill-in at kicker is Koo, who previously played for the Chargers. The Chargers signed Koo as an undrafted free agent in 2017 out of Georgia Southern to become their starting kicker. The Georgia Southern product didn't kick in the NFL in 2018.

However, as cool as his name is, the young kicker struggled as a rookie in Los Angeles. In four games as the starter, Koo made just three of his six field-goal attempts. At the same time, he was able to make all nine of his extra-point tries, which has been Gostkowski's kryptonite this season.

Through four games this season, Gostkowski made seven of his eight field-goal attempts. On the other hand, fans in Foxborough were growing wary of their veteran kicker with him missing four extra-point attempts.

Nevertheless, the undefeated Patriots will need to find a kicker ahead of Sunday's game against the Washington Redskins. Along with Koo, New England is also contemplating bringing in veterans Kai Forbath or Mike Nugent.

Luckily for Bill Belichick's squad, they are heavily favored to defeat the winless Redskins in Week 5.