JMF2006 Posted December 26, 2019 Share Posted December 26, 2019 On 12/24/2019 at 5:37 PM, ChasBB said: The Raiders were the first team (maybe only team for I can recall) to ever draft a punter in the 1st round of the NFL draft back in 1973. He was well worth the pick. His hang times were insane and he had plenty of distance, too. What a difference maker in a game of field position! If another punter like Ray Guy ever comes along, I'd have NO PROBLEM with the Bills expending a 1st round pick on him. It was because of Ray Guy that the NFL even began to track "hang time" as a punting statistic. It's kind of amazing that no one has ever really come close to being a difference maker at the punter position since Guy played. They also drafted a place kicker in the first Sea Bass Sebastian Janikowski I say search the Aussie Rules League...there balls are bigger You want a punter get a guy that's a UDFA from the land down under. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1ManRaid Posted December 26, 2019 Share Posted December 26, 2019 On 12/24/2019 at 7:07 PM, sullim4 said: I do often wonder why specialists don't try to excel at both kicking and punting. You'd save a roster spot if your kicker and punter were the same person - it seems like this is something Belichick would think of. Who does the punting/kicking if your one guy gets injured? Usually the punter and kicker fill in as backup for each other. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ethan in Cleveland Posted December 26, 2019 Share Posted December 26, 2019 The difference between the best net punter and worst is about ten yards and the difference from average is only 5 yards. At four punts per game if you had the best punter on the NFL, you maybe net 20 yards more than your opponent. Not insignificant but not significant either. Just find an average punter that avoids the shank and can kick directionally. Using a Late round pick every few years for a punter or kicker is fine as most of the late round position guys are out of the NFL in a year or two anyways. 18 minutes ago, 1ManRaid said: Who does the punting/kicking if your one guy gets injured? Usually the punter and kicker fill in as backup for each other. Chad Johnson Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. WEO Posted December 26, 2019 Share Posted December 26, 2019 Wasn't he the "Guy" with half a foot? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
/dev/null Posted December 26, 2019 Share Posted December 26, 2019 3 minutes ago, Mr. WEO said: Wasn't he the "Guy" with half a foot? You're thinking of Tom Dempsey, saints kicker with half a foot. Dempsey kicked a 63 yard field goal in the 70s, a record that held for like 25 years 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beast Posted December 26, 2019 Share Posted December 26, 2019 If any GM selects a freaking punter in the 1st round of the draft he deserves to be fired, 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1ManRaid Posted December 27, 2019 Share Posted December 27, 2019 21 hours ago, Ethan in Portland said: The difference between the best net punter and worst is about ten yards and the difference from average is only 5 yards. At four punts per game if you had the best punter on the NFL, you maybe net 20 yards more than your opponent. Not insignificant but not significant either. Just find an average punter that avoids the shank and can kick directionally. Using a Late round pick every few years for a punter or kicker is fine as most of the late round position guys are out of the NFL in a year or two anyways. Chad Johnson I'll take "not insignificant" over the typically non-existent contribution of most other 53rd roster spots. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
billsfan714 Posted December 27, 2019 Share Posted December 27, 2019 21 hours ago, /dev/null said: You're thinking of Tom Dempsey, saints kicker with half a foot. Dempsey kicked a 63 yard field goal in the 70s, a record that held for like 25 years My uncle took me to the 79 season opener, remember Dempsey missing a 34 yarder at the end to keep the Dolphins win steak against continuing.....good times. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ethan in Cleveland Posted December 27, 2019 Share Posted December 27, 2019 4 hours ago, 1ManRaid said: I'll take "not insignificant" over the typically non-existent contribution of most other 53rd roster spots. Agree with you there. I would always carry an extra DB, WR, and OLB as my 51, 52, and 53. They are the most versatile. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jay_Fixit Posted December 27, 2019 Share Posted December 27, 2019 18 hours ago, Binghamton Beast said: If any GM selects a freaking punter in the 1st round of the draft he deserves to be fired, What is with this fan base and punters? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
billsfan89 Posted December 27, 2019 Share Posted December 27, 2019 (edited) If you could trade a 1st round pick for Justin Tucker would you do it? I honestly don't think trading a later 1st round pick for such a great kicker is all that bad an idea. Considering that usually 2-3 games a year come down to kicking having a guy you know is money 49 yards and in (along with consistently money on extra points) and has a high degree of success post 50 and can hit a 60+ yarder in the right conditions gives you a lot of value in a league where so many games are decided by single scores. The reason we don't see kickers in particular drafted in round one is mainly due to the position being hard to project into the pros. Kickers drafted high or in the mid-rounds are a crapshoot. If there was more certainty around the position and you had a high chance of getting a Justin Tucker type kicker by drafting one early you would see kickers go high fairly often. As far as a punter goes I wonder how good Guy was? I know his reputation and credentials were outstanding but how does his punting stand up to the modern era? Genuinely curious. Edited December 27, 2019 by billsfan89 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ColoradoBills Posted December 27, 2019 Share Posted December 27, 2019 1 hour ago, billsfan89 said: If you could trade a 1st round pick for Justin Tucker would you do it? I honestly don't think trading a later 1st round pick for such a great kicker is all that bad an idea. Considering that usually 2-3 games a year come down to kicking having a guy you know is money 49 yards and in (along with consistently money on extra points) and has a high degree of success post 50 and can hit a 60+ yarder in the right conditions gives you a lot of value in a league where so many games are decided by single scores. The reason we don't see kickers in particular drafted in round one is mainly due to the position being hard to project into the pros. Kickers drafted high or in the mid-rounds are a crapshoot. If there was more certainty around the position and you had a high chance of getting a Justin Tucker type kicker by drafting one early you would see kickers go high fairly often. As far as a punter goes I wonder how good Guy was? I know his reputation and credentials were outstanding but how does his punting stand up to the modern era? Genuinely curious. He changed how the position was played. He truly was incredible to watch. During that era the vast majority of punts (and kick offs) were returned. Teams looked hard for good KO and PRs to change the field position. His hang time and accuracy was constantly commented about by the TV announcers and took away a big part of the opponents game. Stats like fair catches, inside the 20 and "coffin corner" kicks are hard to find for those years but I would imagine he would still be a good punter today. The punters today are all capable of decent hang time and the way a punt is kicked and defended is all about getting a fair catch out of it. One big change is back then there was not nearly as many "blocking in the back" penalties as there are today and punt returns were a fun and exciting part of the game. The 1st round pick was crazy but during those Madden years in Oakland crazy was the norm. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OldTimeAFLGuy Posted December 27, 2019 Share Posted December 27, 2019 23 hours ago, Binghamton Beast said: If any GM selects a freaking punter in the 1st round of the draft he deserves to be fired, ....didn't duh Raiders take a PK in the 1st as well?.....a/k/a Janowski?............... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
billsfan89 Posted December 27, 2019 Share Posted December 27, 2019 13 minutes ago, ColoradoBills said: He changed how the position was played. He truly was incredible to watch. During that era the vast majority of punts (and kick offs) were returned. Teams looked hard for good KO and PRs to change the field position. His hang time and accuracy was constantly commented about by the TV announcers and took away a big part of the opponents game. Stats like fair catches, inside the 20 and "coffin corner" kicks are hard to find for those years but I would imagine he would still be a good punter today. The punters today are all capable of decent hang time and the way a punt is kicked and defended is all about getting a fair catch out of it. One big change is back then there was not nearly as many "blocking in the back" penalties as there are today and punt returns were a fun and exciting part of the game. The 1st round pick was crazy but during those Madden years in Oakland crazy was the norm. It is just weird because his numbers on net average punt while good aren't dramatically better than quality modern punters. So it is hard to quantify his impact. But of course he earned a reputation for a reason. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beast Posted December 27, 2019 Share Posted December 27, 2019 1 hour ago, OldTimeAFLGuy said: ....didn't duh Raiders take a PK in the 1st as well?.....a/k/a Janowski?............... I think so. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jay_Fixit Posted December 28, 2019 Share Posted December 28, 2019 On 12/24/2019 at 7:21 PM, WMDman said: Not your friend, guy. Not your guy, buddy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve O Posted December 28, 2019 Share Posted December 28, 2019 On 12/24/2019 at 6:41 PM, Mcdermott said: For the record, the Saints drafted Russell Erxleben in the first round to be both punter and kicker but ended up only being a punter. Steve Little was also drafted in the first round to be both punter and place kicker, however he didn't do very well at either as a pro. He and Erxleben co-hold the NCAA record long field goal at 67 yards. Erxleben was released from prison in July and is available now. Little is dead. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mcdermott Posted December 29, 2019 Share Posted December 29, 2019 7 hours ago, Steve O said: Steve Little was also drafted in the first round to be both punter and place kicker, however he didn't do very well at either as a pro. He and Erxleben co-hold the NCAA record long field goal at 67 yards. Erxleben was released from prison in July and is available now. Little is dead. I always forget about Little. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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