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A closer look at Greg Zuerlein's missed kicks
By Nick Wagoner
http://espn.go.com/blog/st-louis-rams/post/_/id/14449/a-closer-look-at-greg-zuerleins-missed-kicks
WASHINGTON, D.C. -- St. Louis Rams kicker Greg Zuerlein has had some rough days in the NFL. There haven't been many but none worse than what took place in the first half of the team's 24-0 win against the Washington Redskins on Sunday.
In those first 30 minutes, Zuerlein missed an extra point and field goal attempts of 28 and 38 yards. Entering the game, Zuerlein had never missed an extra point or a field goal attempt inside 30 yards in his nearly three year career in the NFL.
Earlier this season, Zuerlein had a rough day against Kansas City, missing a 38-yard field goal and mis-hitting a kickoff that led to a 99-yard return for a touchdown by the Chiefs Knile Davis.
But something was clearly off Sunday as Zuerlein pushed all of his misses to the right. Even when he course corrected a bit in the second half, his kicks were still moving to the right.
So what, exactly, was the problem? Was it just a case of the yips?
"Yeah, I think so," coach Jeff Fisher said. "It happens every once in awhile. He had a great week. He spent a lot of time outside on the grass in the weather and outside and he just had something wrong with the mechanics and the swing."
I didn't get a chance to catch up with Zuerlein after the game because the visitors locker room divides the offense and defense and I was spending most of my time catching up with defensive players after their second consecutive shutout. By the time I got back to the offensive side, Zuerlein was gone. To be clear, Zuerlein didn't avoid anything and he never has. He's always been a standup guy.
So we turned to quarterback Shaun Hill to get his perspective on if there was anything he could offer that might further explain Zuerlein's struggles.
"The elements probably didn’t look that bad out there but the grass was long and the field was soft, the wind was blowing," Hill said. "It’s a rough place to kick today out there for him and really a tough place to throw at times, too."
That might just sound like a team captain doing what he should and sticking up for a teammate but I can actually vouch for Hill's assessment of the field conditions. Redskins reporter John Keim and I walked on the field after to shoot our game balls video and it was obvious that the field was in horrible shape.
That's not really an excuse for Zuerlein, who still has to at least make extra points and there's little doubt that the first miss probably led to some mental block that led to the others. But it's still worth noting.
For what it's worth, Fisher expressed confidence in Zuerlein during and after the game.
"I told him we were going to need him and probably need him to win this game for us," Fisher said. "So forget what happened and just hit it between those two poles that are at the end of the field. You want to hit them between them, you don’t want to hit them outside."
Zuerlein's job appears safe for now but if his problems continue Thursday night against Arizona, the Rams will have no choice but to take a closer look.
By Nick Wagoner
http://espn.go.com/blog/st-louis-rams/post/_/id/14449/a-closer-look-at-greg-zuerleins-missed-kicks
WASHINGTON, D.C. -- St. Louis Rams kicker Greg Zuerlein has had some rough days in the NFL. There haven't been many but none worse than what took place in the first half of the team's 24-0 win against the Washington Redskins on Sunday.
In those first 30 minutes, Zuerlein missed an extra point and field goal attempts of 28 and 38 yards. Entering the game, Zuerlein had never missed an extra point or a field goal attempt inside 30 yards in his nearly three year career in the NFL.
Earlier this season, Zuerlein had a rough day against Kansas City, missing a 38-yard field goal and mis-hitting a kickoff that led to a 99-yard return for a touchdown by the Chiefs Knile Davis.
But something was clearly off Sunday as Zuerlein pushed all of his misses to the right. Even when he course corrected a bit in the second half, his kicks were still moving to the right.
So what, exactly, was the problem? Was it just a case of the yips?
"Yeah, I think so," coach Jeff Fisher said. "It happens every once in awhile. He had a great week. He spent a lot of time outside on the grass in the weather and outside and he just had something wrong with the mechanics and the swing."
I didn't get a chance to catch up with Zuerlein after the game because the visitors locker room divides the offense and defense and I was spending most of my time catching up with defensive players after their second consecutive shutout. By the time I got back to the offensive side, Zuerlein was gone. To be clear, Zuerlein didn't avoid anything and he never has. He's always been a standup guy.
So we turned to quarterback Shaun Hill to get his perspective on if there was anything he could offer that might further explain Zuerlein's struggles.
"The elements probably didn’t look that bad out there but the grass was long and the field was soft, the wind was blowing," Hill said. "It’s a rough place to kick today out there for him and really a tough place to throw at times, too."
That might just sound like a team captain doing what he should and sticking up for a teammate but I can actually vouch for Hill's assessment of the field conditions. Redskins reporter John Keim and I walked on the field after to shoot our game balls video and it was obvious that the field was in horrible shape.
That's not really an excuse for Zuerlein, who still has to at least make extra points and there's little doubt that the first miss probably led to some mental block that led to the others. But it's still worth noting.
For what it's worth, Fisher expressed confidence in Zuerlein during and after the game.
"I told him we were going to need him and probably need him to win this game for us," Fisher said. "So forget what happened and just hit it between those two poles that are at the end of the field. You want to hit them between them, you don’t want to hit them outside."
Zuerlein's job appears safe for now but if his problems continue Thursday night against Arizona, the Rams will have no choice but to take a closer look.
