The truth behind "Wide Right"

[Mickey]

My Gary Anderson theory:

 

1982, the year we drafted GAry Anderson to be our PK, there was a rookie deadline, if they didn't sign by then they got some sort of automatic, very cheap, contract. Anderson, who I watched practically never miss a kick in college here at SU, was picked by Buffalo who played hard ball with him on his contract knowing he had his back up against the rookie deadline wall. Reluctantly, he signed, came to camp and then proceeded to miss everything. I mean EVERTYTHING. Even xp's. He practically wiffed a few in Charlie Brown fashion.

 

Last cut before the season we dropped him even though he was the highest drafted kicker we ever had. We ended up starting Efren Herrera who never played again after that year. Anderson was signed immediately after we cut him by the Steelers, I think he signed the deal at the airport. If memory serves, it was well above that rookie benchmark, well above. He suddenly ends up being their starter on opening day despite his dismal preseason. He nailed 83% of his kicks in his rookie year while Efren hit only 57%.

 

Hmmm......Why would the Steelers sign a preseason washout rookie PK and have him start from day one with out so much as a hint of a tryout? Could it be that his agent called the Steelers when Buffalo played hard ball on the contract and set it all up with Gary missing all those easy kicks on purpose?

 

Bad enough but it gets worse: After Herrera went back to selling insurance, we messed around for a few years with Joe Danelo as our kicker until, in 1985, we signed none other than Scott Norwood. The rest is history.

 

Ralph's cheapness, at least in those days anyway, resulted, eventually, in Scott Norwood lining up that 47 yarder for the title when it would otherwise have been Gary Anderson, the most accurate kicker in NFL history. Screwing a 6th round rookie kicker out of a few samolians cost us a freaking Super Bowl title.

 

The irony, the agony, the paranoia.

 

Just a theory.

[RayFinkle]

Scott still ended up with the same amount of Superbowl rings as Gary.

[KD in CA]

Didn't Gary end up blowing an NFC Championship for the Vikings by missing a game clinching chip shot wide right?

[Pete]

Didn't Gary end up blowing an NFC Championship for the Vikings by missing a game clinching chip shot wide right?

724440[/snapback]

yes- one of the biggest choke jobs of any kicker in history. It was a chip shot too- 47 yards is a tough FG to hit

[Kelly the Dog]

I remember thinking how can you keep this guy after he literally missed everything. And you're right, it was everything. I remember thinking you just can't do it, you have to cut him. It would have been different if he was a high draft pick, in the first three I guess. But he also kicked in a dome so maybe they felt he would not be able to make the transition. I was more surprised by Pittsburgh signing him basically to be their kicker without a tryout on the eve of the season than I was by the Bills signing him.

[Crap Throwing Monkey]

yes- one of the biggest choke jobs of any kicker in history.  It was a chip shot too- 47 yards is a tough FG to hit

724441[/snapback]

 

And that after a perfect season for the Vikings. It was the first kick he missed all year.

[leh-nerd skin-erd]

i think this conspiracy theory thread was an exceptional read until it was turned into a kick ralph w. in the grapenuts for failing to spend story. any guy who deliberately tanks the way that fat faced travel gnome clearly and intetionally did will spend eternity in the fiery depths of h-e-double-hockey-sticks. i can see his ugly mug to this day. as martin luther the king jr once stated when talking about anderson...this man will be judge not by the color of his uniform (mlk used the word "skin" here, but pretty clearly that was a metaphor for uniform), but by the content of his character...

 

anderson failed in this test, and he is my sworn enemy for life.

 

one man's opinion...

[Mickey]

i think this conspiracy theory thread was an exceptional read until it was turned into a kick ralph w. in the grapenuts for failing to spend story.  any guy who deliberately tanks the way that fat faced travel gnome clearly and intetionally did will spend eternity in the fiery depths of h-e-double-hockey-sticks.  i can see his ugly mug to this day.  as martin luther the king jr once stated when talking about  anderson...this man will be judge not by the color of his uniform (mlk used the word "skin"  here, but pretty clearly that was a metaphor for uniform), but by the content of his character...

 

anderson failed in this test, and he is my sworn enemy for life. 

 

one man's opinion...

724497[/snapback]

Maybe not Ralph, who was our GM way back then?

[Mickey]

And that after a perfect season for the Vikings.  It was the first kick he missed all year.

724466[/snapback]

He made 12 over 40 and 2 more 50 or over.

 

In 91 he was 8-11 between 40 and 49.

 

 

Never know if he would have made it but I wouldn't bet against him.

[Mickey]

I remember thinking how can you keep this guy after he literally missed everything. And you're right, it was everything. I remember thinking you just can't do it, you have to cut him. It would have been different if he was a high draft pick, in the first three I guess. But he also kicked in a dome so maybe they felt he would not be able to make the transition. I was more surprised by Pittsburgh signing him basically to be their kicker without a tryout on the eve of the season than I was by the Bills signing him.

724445[/snapback]

We didn't have the dome until, I believe, 1980. He was the kicker for SU from '78-'81. So for a couple years he kicked in Archbold which made the Rockpile look like the Plaza Hotel. Even after the Dome was built, he played 1/2 his games outdoors in the northeast against Pitt, Penn State, Boston College, Rutgers and the like in all sorts of bad weather.

 

I saw every home game he ever played and that guy was money, like Christie. Not a huge leg but accurate with a capital "A".

[Max997]

My Gary Anderson theory:

 

1982, the year we drafted GAry Anderson to be our PK, there was a rookie deadline, if they didn't sign by then they got some sort of automatic, very cheap, contract.  Anderson, who I watched practically never miss a kick in college here at SU, was picked by Buffalo who played hard ball with him on his contract knowing he had his back up against the rookie deadline wall.  Reluctantly, he signed, came to camp and then proceeded to miss everything.  I mean EVERTYTHING.  Even xp's.  He practically wiffed a few in Charlie Brown fashion.

 

Last cut before the season we dropped him even though he was the highest drafted kicker we ever had.  We ended up starting Efren Herrera who never played again after that year.  Anderson was signed immediately after we cut him by the Steelers, I think he signed the deal at the airport.  If memory serves, it was well above that rookie benchmark, well above.  He suddenly ends up being their starter on opening day despite his dismal preseason.  He nailed 83% of his kicks in his rookie year while Efren hit only 57%.

 

Hmmm......Why would the Steelers sign a preseason washout rookie PK and have him start from day one with out so much as a hint of a tryout?  Could it be that his agent called the Steelers when Buffalo played hard ball on the contract and set it all up with Gary missing all those easy kicks on purpose?

 

Bad enough but it gets worse:  After Herrera went back to selling insurance, we messed around for a few years with Joe Danelo as our kicker until, in 1985, we signed none other than Scott Norwood.  The rest is history.

 

Ralph's cheapness, at least in those days anyway, resulted, eventually, in Scott Norwood lining up that 47 yarder for the title when it would otherwise have been Gary Anderson, the most accurate kicker in NFL history.  Screwing a 6th round rookie kicker out of a few samolians cost us a freaking Super Bowl title.

 

The irony, the agony, the paranoia.

 

Just a theory.

724419[/snapback]

 

 

There were a lot of bad plays during that game that cost the Bills the victory but one of the biggest was a holding penalty on the kick return on that final drive making the Bills start at around their 10 instead of around the 20....this turned out to be a HUGE penalty. I believe Kelly ran the ball on the first play getting the Bills near the 20 but the clock was running and cost the Bills important seconds

 

UGH, why did I read this thread....no gaurantee Anderson would have made the kick either....but I didnt know what had transpired with his contract and missing kicks, does seem a little shady

[Kelly the Dog]

We didn't have the dome until, I believe, 1980.  He was the kicker for SU from '78-'81.  So for a couple years he kicked in Archbold which made the Rockpile look like the Plaza Hotel.  Even after the Dome was built, he played 1/2 his games outdoors in the northeast against Pitt, Penn State, Boston College, Rutgers and the like in all sorts of bad weather.

 

I saw every home game he ever played and that guy was money, like Christie.  Not a huge leg but accurate with a capital "A".

724504[/snapback]

Thanks for that. That was just a hard choice. I have to admit, if I were the GM I probably would have cut him, and obviously it's a huge mistake. That's one of the reasons the Steelers have a better track record than the Bills, they make the right choices and the Bills often make the wrong ones. I don't think that was a no-brainer at all though, keeping him. It was one of those tough decisions you don't know how will turn out. Clearly there have been kickers in college as good as Anderson who never made it in the pros. Russell Erxleben comes to mind. Although he later made up for it by being a top notch securities broker.

[Albany,n.y.]

For the record, it was Nick Mike-Mayer who we kept over Gary Anderson. Mike-Mayer was cut after game 2. When the strike ended, Herrera was his replacement & played the final 7 games of 1982. It was the last year I lived in WNY & I remember the whole fiasco as if it was yesterday.

[Albany,n.y.]

Thanks for that. That was just a hard choice. I have to admit, if I were the GM I probably would have cut him, and obviously it's a huge mistake.

724513[/snapback]

 

If Polian was GM he would have called him in, told him he was putting him on IR until he was in the mood to play. Polian used IR like a fiddle back in the days when IR rules were different.

[Dibs]

If Polian was GM he would have called him in, told him he was putting him on IR until he was in the mood to play.  Polian used IR like a fiddle back in the days when IR rules were different.

724517[/snapback]

Also, if Marv was the HC at the time he would have made sure none of that ended up happening. Marv would have loved a kicker like Anderson.....luckily the Bucs cut Christie all those years later so Marv could finally have one.

[Kelly the Dog]

Also, if Marv was the HC at the time he would have made sure none of that ended up happening.  Marv would have loved a kicker like Anderson.....luckily the Bucs cut Christie all those years later so Marv could finally have one.

724533[/snapback]

I thought Marv was all about competition in training camp and pre-season and winning the job?

[Dibs]

I thought Marv was all about competition in training camp and pre-season and winning the job? 

724534[/snapback]

Huh?

I was making reference to the fact that Marv places a very high import on the Kicking Teams. I meant he would have pushed very hard for a reasonable contract to be offered to the young kicker.....who would have then signed.....& then would have won the competition at training camp.....& then would have "nailed 83% of his kicks in his rookie year".

[Bob in STL]

My Gary Anderson theory:

 

1982, the year we drafted GAry Anderson to be our PK, there was a rookie deadline, if they didn't sign by then they got some sort of automatic, very cheap, contract.  Anderson, who I watched practically never miss a kick in college here at SU, was picked by Buffalo who played hard ball with him on his contract knowing he had his back up against the rookie deadline wall.  Reluctantly, he signed, came to camp and then proceeded to miss everything.  I mean EVERTYTHING.  Even xp's.  He practically wiffed a few in Charlie Brown fashion.

 

Last cut before the season we dropped him even though he was the highest drafted kicker we ever had.  We ended up starting Efren Herrera who never played again after that year.  Anderson was signed immediately after we cut him by the Steelers, I think he signed the deal at the airport.  If memory serves, it was well above that rookie benchmark, well above.  He suddenly ends up being their starter on opening day despite his dismal preseason.  He nailed 83% of his kicks in his rookie year while Efren hit only 57%.

 

Hmmm......Why would the Steelers sign a preseason washout rookie PK and have him start from day one with out so much as a hint of a tryout?  Could it be that his agent called the Steelers when Buffalo played hard ball on the contract and set it all up with Gary missing all those easy kicks on purpose?

 

Bad enough but it gets worse:  After Herrera went back to selling insurance, we messed around for a few years with Joe Danelo as our kicker until, in 1985, we signed none other than Scott Norwood.  The rest is history.

 

Ralph's cheapness, at least in those days anyway, resulted, eventually, in Scott Norwood lining up that 47 yarder for the title when it would otherwise have been Gary Anderson, the most accurate kicker in NFL history.  Screwing a 6th round rookie kicker out of a few samolians cost us a freaking Super Bowl title.

 

The irony, the agony, the paranoia.

 

Just a theory.

724419[/snapback]

 

Anderson missed every kick in the preseason. He was awful. The Steelers lucked out as Anderson had a long and productive career. The Steelers had to get him for less $$ off of waivers than we were offering. Contract or no contract if Anderson missed those kicks on purpose then he is a bigger puss than I thought.

[Pete]

There were a lot of bad plays during that game that cost the Bills the victory but one of the biggest was a holding penalty on the kick return on that final drive making the Bills start at around their 10 instead of around the 20....this turned out to be a HUGE penalty. I believe Kelly ran the ball on the first play getting the Bills near the 20 but the clock was running and cost the Bills important seconds

 

UGH, why did I read this thread....no gaurantee Anderson would have made the kick either....but I didnt know what had transpired with his contract and missing kicks, does seem a little shady

724505[/snapback]

Jim Kelly cost us the game- worst clock management ever! We got the ball with 2:16 on the clock, Thurman got 10+ yards everytime he touched the ball, and the best JK could do was drive for a 47 yard FG?! Jim Kelly blew that game worse then Norwood

[Kelly the Dog]

Huh?

I was making reference to the fact that Marv places a very high import on the Kicking Teams.  I meant he would have pushed very hard for a reasonable contract to be offered to the young kicker.....who would have then signed.....& then would have won the competition at training camp.....& then would have "nailed 83% of his kicks in his rookie year".

724540[/snapback]

He was a sixth round draft choice and in camp and played the entire pre-season on the Bills, and he missed every single kick, like 0-6 or something including several short ones and a couple PATs I think.