As a junior in 2004, Zuerlein set a Nebraska state record for field goals in a season, converting 12-of-16 attempts with a long of 52 yards.

Zuerlein accepted a football scholarship from the NCAA Division II University of Nebraska Omaha (UNO).

In 2011, UNO canceled its football program so Zuerlein was forced to transfer to another Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association school, Missouri Western State University.

The Rams cut their primary kicker Josh Brown, who was in the final year of his $14.5 million five-year deal, the same weekend they drafted Zuerlein.

[12] In Week 4, he hit a 60-yard field goal against the Seattle Seahawks, which beat the franchise record of 58 yards, set by Zuerlein earlier in the same game.

[16] In Week 13, Zuerlein made a 54-yard field goal with 26 seconds remaining in overtime to give the Rams a 16–13 victory over the San Francisco 49ers at the Edward Jones Dome.

[21][22] In Week 2, Zuerlein converted four field goal attempts and one extra point to help provide the difference in the 19–17 victory over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

[27] In Week 5, against the Green Bay Packers, he converted one of four field goal attempts in the 24–10 loss, the first time since his rookie season that he missed three in a single game.

[28] In Week 9, against the Minnesota Vikings, he converted four of five field goal attempts for a season-high 12 points scored in the 21–18 loss.

[37] The Rams' offense did not provide a lot of opportunities for Zuerlein compared to the past and he scored a career-low 80 points on the 4–12 season.

[39] On September 10, 2017, in the season opener against the Indianapolis Colts, Zuerlein converted three field goals and five extra points in a 46–9 home victory.

[41] On October 1, 2017, Zuerlein broke the Rams record for the most field goals in a game going 7-for-7 (surpassing Jeff Wilkins in 2006) against the Dallas Cowboys in the Rams 35–30 upset win, earning him NFC Special Teams Player of the Week for the fourth time in his career.

[42] On November 2, 2017, Zuerlein received the NFC Special Teams Player of the Month award for his strong performances in October.

[49] In the 2018 season opener, Zuerlein converted all three extra point attempts and converted four of five field goal attempts, including a 55-yarder in a 33–13 win over the Raiders on Monday Night Football, earning him NFC Special Teams Player of the Week for the sixth time in his career.

[57] In the 2019 NFC Championship Game against the New Orleans Saints, Zuerlein was instrumental in the Rams' overtime win, hitting all four of his field-goal attempts.

The winning kick tied the record for the longest successful field goal in NFL overtime history.

[59] In Super Bowl LIII against the New England Patriots, Zuerlein made a 53-yard field goal late in the third quarter to score the first Rams’ points and tie the game at 3–3.

In the season opener, he made a 33-yard field goal, but also had a 53-yard miss in the second quarter of the 17–20 loss against the Los Angeles Rams.

[64] In the twelfth game against the Baltimore Ravens, he connected on his first field goal attempt, but missed the next three in a 17–34 loss.

[67] In Week 2 against the Los Angeles Chargers, although he was facing scrutiny in the press for his performance, he was able to make a 56-yard field goal as time expired, to close a 20–17 win.

[68] In Week 6, he made a 49-yard field goal in the rain against the Patriots, to force overtime in an eventual 35–29 win.

In Week 13 against the Vikings, he set the franchise record for the longest field goal made (60 yards).

In Week 3 against the Cincinnati Bengals, he became the third Jet to make two 50+ yard field goals in a single game.

Two day later, he was placed on injured reserve with a knee injury on December 31, ending his season after playing in only eight games.