Fisher Losing Faith In Zeurlein?

[PhxRam]

Just speculation on my part, but has anyone else noticed Fishers reluctance to utilize Zeurlein right before the half in both the Washington and Steelers game?

In Washington they have 11 seconds before halftime and zero timeouts. Ball is roughly at the 40 (from memory).

Instead of putting some potential points on the board, what do they do? Take a shot down the middle of the field and time runs out.

Against the Steelers they are again in FG range for Zeurlein. Instead of trying a long FG, they elect to punt which ultimately ends up in the endzone for a touchback.

Sometimes you play the field position game. I get that. But when your offense is struggling, sometimes these guys need a little moral booster and see some points on the board. You got a kicker with one of the strongest legs in the game. USE it.

Just throwing some personal observations out there. Dont read into it too far. It just seems like to me we missed a couple opportunities to gain some momentum going into the half.

 

[Dieter the Brock]

Zeurlein first seems to lack confidence in himself.
Me and Let's Go Rams were pulling our hair out during the Seahawks game cause he wasn't kicking it out of the endzone
Finally he started doing just that in the 4th but it just drove you nuts
So yeah, I think Fisher is starting to doubt a lot of his players

 

[blackbart]

I doubt it, the announcers last week were saying Z was drilling them from 65 in warm ups. He seems to be a little more accurate, more down the middle on the kicks he's had so far. But, I think they should have gone for the field goal in that situation against the Steelers too.

 

[Prime Time]

Fisher has reason to lack confidence in many of his players but not Greg Zuerlein. He's 5 for 5 this season and 78 for 94 in his career.

 

[V3]

It's possible but I'm thinking Fisher probably just wants to get the offense going so he's giving them more chances to prove they can do it.

 

[Lesson]

Remember his rookie year when he was attempting from 55+ out? Then he missed 3 FGs vs Miami and seemed to be in a bit of a funk? That might be why. He's a good K who has a great leg. There's no need to consistently risk giving the opponent good field position if he misses.

 

[PhxRam]

Remember his rookie year when he was attempting from 55+ out? Then he missed 3 FGs vs Miami and seemed to be in a bit of a funk? That might be why. He's a good K who has a great leg. There's no need to consistently risk giving the opponent good field position if he misses.

The non FG attempt against Pitt I have a easier time understanding. IMO, the non attempt against Washington was simply a bad decision.

 

[LetsGoRams]

What I don't get, and I observed this in the Steeler game... the guy boots 65 yard field goals routinely in pre-game. The announcers were even commenting about it, and anyone that's gone to a game has seen it. He's got the leg for it. He had a chance when we were down 9-3 to kick what I believe would have been a 57 yard field goal near the end of the half. What that tells me is 2 things - either he doesn't trust GZ or he doesn't trust his defense to make a stop. Why have a guy who can kick it that far and very accurately if you're not gonna use them. Why have a top 10 defense if you don't trust them?

 

[PhxRam]

What that tells me is 2 things - either he doesn't trust GZ or he doesn't trust his defense to make a stop.

He must have had SOME faith.. He tried a fake punt on the 50.

 

[Robocop]

i was yelling at the tv at least twice when fisher sends out Hekker instead of letting Zeurlein try a couple 50-60 yarders. its the offense that deserves to not have any faith in not Greg. if your offense is playing like shit the entire game yet your defense is dominating than nut up and let him take a couple shots for some much needed points. fake punt try or not. if he had simply let GZ take a couple shots that were easily within his range it could've been a 12-12 game. smh

 

[LetsGoRams]

He must have had SOME faith.. He tried a fake punt on the 50.

Then it must be GZ?

 

[fearsomefour]

Zuerline is 14 out of 23 (60.8%) for his career from 50 yards and beyond.
I think most agree a 51 yarder is much easier than a 58 yarder, but still, not a bad percentage. Maybe Washington was because it was off of turf. I think GZ should be utilized any situation he can before the end of the half. Trying a 59 harder with 1:28 left and the other team has two timeouts, that is different obviously than trying the same kick with :29 seconds left and the other team has no timeouts. It is just so easy for that long kick attempt to turn into a six point swing.

 

[-X-]

I just think he was reluctant to try a low percentage FG and risk giving Pitt good field position. But sometimes you gotta let these guys do what you drafted them to do.

 

[blue4]

I think Fisher sometimes makes offensive decisions out of fear. The man will risk everything on an all out blitz or a ST fakes but won't kick what is now a fairly common attempt in the NFL. 50 yard field goals aren't as uncommon as they used to be. You need points to win. I disagreed with both decisions. Now, I would have been more likely to agree had we had even an average offense but we must take what we can get and trust the part of our team that's working to get a stop if we fail. He either clinches up in fear, or he.. well frankly I don't know why else.

 

[TheDYVKX]

I guess we'll really find out when it's time to make a decision on his contract.

 

[woofwoofmo]

Maybe I missed something, but according to the play summary Pittsburgh had the ball at the end of the 1st half when time ran out. They took possession after a Zuerlein FG making the score 9-3.

Pittsburgh Steelers at 2:05, (1st play from scrimmage 2:00)
1-10-PIT 18 (2:00) (Shotgun) B.Roethlisberger pass short left to L.Bell to PIT 27 for 9 yards [R.Quinn]. PENALTY on PIT-K.Beachum, Offensive Holding, 9 yards, enforced at PIT 18 - No Play.
1-19-PIT 9 (1:53) (Shotgun) L.Bell left tackle to PIT 14 for 5 yards (M.Barron; A.Ogletree).
2-14-PIT 14 (1:28) (No Huddle, Shotgun) B.Roethlisberger pass short left to A.Brown to PIT 26 for 12 yards (J.Jenkins).
3-2-PIT 26 59) (No Huddle, Shotgun) B.Roethlisberger pass short middle to A.Brown to PIT 33 for 7 yards (J.Jenkins). P12 Timeout #1 by PIT at 00:54.
1-10-PIT 33 54) (Shotgun) B.Roethlisberger sacked at PIT 24 for -9 yards (A.Ogletree).
2-19-PIT 24 09) (Shotgun) B.Roethlisberger pass short middle to H.Miller to PIT 33 for 9 yards (J.Laurinaitis).

As for the Washington game, if there are 11 seconds left and the ball is on the 40yd line, that means it's being kicked from the 47/48 yd line on a dicey playing surface. If you miss you turn the ball over at the 47/48yd line with 3 or 4 seconds left on the clock, giving the Skins a shot at a Hail Mary to end the half. Don't think there was any choice at all in this circumstance.

 

[PhxRam]

Maybe I missed something, but according to the play summary Pittsburgh had the ball at the end of the 1st half when time ran out. They took possession after a Zuerlein FG making the score 9-3.

You are indeed correct.. I never said the Rams had the ball to end the half. I only said they were in FG nearing the half.

If you miss you turn the ball over at the 47/48yd line with 3 or 4 seconds left on the clock, giving the Skins a shot at a Hail Mary to end the half. Don't think there was any choice at all in this circumstance.

There are plenty of choices.

A quick hitter towards the sideline so the receiver can get out of bounds and save the clock.
Run another play and throw the ball away if there is nothing available.

I will take my chances on a hail mary play (which Cousins probably cant even do) everyday of the week.

 

[Merlin]

I think the OP brings up a good point. Don't think he's lost faith in Greg or anything, it probably has more to do with individual matchups on the field goal unit vs the opponent along with risk/reward at that field position. But he has been very cautious with the FG unit.

I personally was irritated by it. At that time it just seemed like the field position swing would be made up by a few dinks/dunks by Big Ben anyway, and the Rams offense was struggling. Going off memory here I think the punt went in the end zone anyway so it was a 20-30 yard swing. Granted, I'm sure Fish wanted the pin and then a 3 and out and the ball back at midfield but it didn't work out that way.

 

[dieterbrock]

You are indeed correct.. I never said the Rams had the ball to end the half. I only said they were in FG nearing the half.



There are plenty of choices.

A quick hitter towards the sideline so the receiver can get out of bounds and save the clock.
Run another play and throw the ball away if there is nothing available.

I will take my chances on a hail mary play (which Cousins probably cant even do) everyday of the week.

Absolutely. A 57 yarder is not an attempt that Fisher would pass up, certainly not out of fear that with a miss theyd have a hail mary chance

 

[Alaskan Ram]

I think moving the extra point may have a positive effect on the good kickers. The Leg has been nailing those strait down the middle. That many extra makes becoming "automatic" has to help a kickers mind set when he trots out to collect a mid range three instead of one. Distance has never been his problem. Seems like he kicks with same technique whether its from 15 or 65. I won't be surprised if this is his best year.

I think in the Steelers' game I was siding with Fish......I felt like a miss at mid field hurts the team more than a make helps. It wasn't a disrespect against the Defense....It was lack of faith in the offense to be able to flip the field again in a field position game.

 

[Elmgrovegnome]

Just speculation on my part, but has anyone else noticed Fishers reluctance to utilize Zeurlein right before the half in both the Washington and Steelers game?

In Washington they have 11 seconds before halftime and zero timeouts. Ball is roughly at the 40 (from memory).

Instead of putting some potential points on the board, what do they do? Take a shot down the middle of the field and time runs out.

Against the Steelers they are again in FG range for Zeurlein. Instead of trying a long FG, they elect to punt which ultimately ends up in the endzone for a touchback.

Sometimes you play the field position game. I get that. But when your offense is struggling, sometimes these guys need a little moral booster and see some points on the board. You got a kicker with one of the strongest legs in the game. USE it.

Just throwing some personal observations out there. Dont read into it too far. It just seems like to me we missed a couple opportunities to gain some momentum going into the half.

I felt like the decisions were justified if you consider Fishers mindset. In Washington they needed points the way that game was going. They needed a TD not just 3. They needed a big momentum swing and may have seen something that made him think they could cash in.

Against Pittsburgh he played the field position game because he thought the D might get a safety with a good punt and he has supreme trust in Hekker. A deep punt and a safety would have demoralized the Steelers Oline a bit and swung momentum. If they miss the field goal and the Steelers take over, they are one long Antonio Bryant TD away from utter disaster. I think he was right in a way, but I still go for the points if Zeurlein has been accurate in practice at long range. The Rams needed a boost at that point and 3 would have sufficed in a very close game.