Tag Archives: Punter of the Week

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TSR’s Punter of the Week:
Mat McBriar – Philadelphia Eagles

Who is he?
The 33-year-old Melbourne, Australia native is a proven NFL punter who played eight solid seasons with the Dallas Cowboys. After being cast aside by Jerry Jones in favor of Chris Jones, McBriar landed in Philly. He lost this past summer’s training camp competition for the Eagles job with Chas Henry only to be brought back in late September when Philly cut Henry after a week 3 loss to Arizona. McBriar went to college at Hawaii and is a two-time NFL Pro Bowler. A benign cyst impacting a nerve in McBriar’s plant leg was removed during a procedure at the Mayo Clinic last February. While the Eagles season has not gone well, McBriar has been pretty good since getting the call-back to Philly.

The McBriar stat line vs. the Saints 11-5-12:
Four punts. 178 yards total. 44.5 yards per. 38.3 net.

The punts in detail:

1. The Saints sacked Mike Vick three consecutive plays on Philly‘s first spurt-and-stop drive, setting an immediate tone for the game. McBriar’s first punt came after Vick walked off battered. Standing just inside midfield on fourth and 29, McBriar’s number 1 jersey was untucked. He dons bulky-looking shoulder pads. McBriar appeared wary of the Saints punt rush after the Eagle O-line yielded such glaring early exposure to Vick. He rushed his kick and made contact with the ball just a few inches away from a clogged up cluster of blockers in front of him. Saints wideout Lance Moore was set to receive the punt, his first chance of the season after replacing Darren Sproles on return duties because Sproles is out with a broken hand. The punt landed at the one and a half. The ball kicked up black rubber and sand infill cushion contained in the UBU Speed Series-55-M artificial surface and rolled into the end zone. It was a 46-yard punt. With the touchback, the net went in the books as just 26 yards.

2. McBriar stands a full 13 yards behind the snapper and looks a little fidgety as he waits to launch it. His second punt came with five minutes to go in the first half. Vick was under unrelenting pressure and couldn’t sustain drives. After a low snap, McBriar punted from inside his own 30 and delivered a dud. It wasn’t a shank. It was simply a dud. A 32-yard punt to the Saints 26 and a fair catch by Cadet. 32 and 32. Too many punts like this one will get a punter punted out of town.

3. Nearing the end of the first half, McBriar let a good one rip in the friendly punting confines of the Super Dome. Perhaps the lack of punt rush put his mind at ease. This blast was recorded as a 55-yarder with a five-yard Lance Moore return. It hung up there a while. Unofficially, 4.6 on the hang time. After the play was over, ESPN paid brief tribute to the great sports broadcaster Jim Durham who passed away over the weekend. Durham called Bulls games for a long stretch during my childhood and I have warm memories of listening to J-D on my clock radio. Before the three-point stripe was added, Durham pulled me in with his “need a stop” and “Bulls can cut it to six with a hoop” lines.

4. It gets noisy in the Dome with the Saints on D. But before punts, the crowd doesn’t seem to go as crazy. McBriar’s final punt of the game came early in the final quarter. I noticed Mat flicks his right foot in the air a little right before the punt. A little flex or shake, I guess. McBriar also licked his right hand for grip assistance. Martez Wilson of the Saints put a juke move on Riley Cooper while rushing in from the left end and nearly blocked McBriar‘s punt. Wilson probably would clubbed it clean had he dove for the pigskin. This is yet another example of Philly’s extreme deficiency in the protection element of the game. The 45-yard punt was not returned by Lance Moore. 45-yards on the net.

The Sound of a Punt:
70-year-old Merrill Reese is the play-by-play man on Eagles radio broadcasts. He’s held the job since 1977. Reese gets a little cranky when the Eagles aren’t playing well and he moaned quite a bit during the call of this game. You get a feel for his outwardly expressed level of aggravation in this call of McBriar’s third punt. The game was carried in Philly on WIP-FM.

The Punt-osis:
McBriar finds himself at the crossroads of his fine career. The circumstances of his release by the Eagles in training camp (and subsequent return) are a bit mysterious but there have been reports that it was about money, his holding skills on field goals or lingering problems related to the cyst removal. McBriar is in a bit of a tough spot given the ineffectiveness of Philly’s blocking and the uncertainty of Andy Reid’s regime going into next season. But if he can regain the consistent, injury-free form that kept him in Big D for so long, he ought to stick around in this league for some time to come. His first taste of the carousel whirl so often experienced by punters is six weeks in the rear view now. I’m rooting for him, for sure.

Next week’s Punter of the Week:
Chris Kluwe – Minnesota Vikings

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TSR’s Punter of the Week:
Zoltan Mesko – New England Patriots

Who is he?
Mesko’s path to a punting job in the NFL is not typical. He was born in Romania. A successful draw in a visa lottery (a one in 400 shot) allowed his parents to seek a better life in the United States when Zoltan was just 11 years old. After a brief stay in New York City, the Mesko’s settled in the town of Twinsburg, Ohio. As the story goes, Zoltan’s kickball prowess soon after his arrival in Ohio wowed observers. He kicked footballs on his high school squad and went on to be a great punter at the University of Michigan. Bill Belichick grabbed Mesko in the fifth round of the 2010 draft and he’s been solidly reliable since. Now 26 years old in his third pro season, Mesko has both a bachelor’s degree in finance and a master’s degree in sports management. The relatively modest 4-year, $2 mil rookie contract signed by Mesko expires at the end of next season. At the rate he’s punting, Mesko is looking at a hefty pay raise when he becomes a free agent in 2014. His 41.5 yards per punt net was tops in the AFC last season. His 46.5 yards per gross number gave him the best season using that punter measurement in Pats team history.

The Mesko stat line vs. the Rams 10-28-12:
Two punts. 113 yards total. Avg. 56.5 yards per. 46.5 net.

The punts in detail:

1. NFL commish Roger Goodell didn’t bother to show up for his league’s annual flirtation with London. It’s probably good he didn’t. This game was a dud. The Patriots scored on each of their first six possessions which means Mesko didn’t get a chance to punt until late in the third quarter. With the outcome already settled, Zoltan stepped onto Wembley’s nicely-maintained natural grass field with 2:36 left in the third. The big Romanian wore a fanny pack strapped to his waist. Nantz and Simms called the game for CBS and exchanged laughs when Mesko finally made an appearance. “Here’s your guy,” Simms told Nantz. “You’ve been waitin’ on him.” Before receiving the snap, Mesko flicked his fingers like he was about to play a piano. Hunched forward with his right plant foot extended ahead of him for reception of the snap, Mesko crushed a 62-yard punt that bounced at the Rams four-yard-line before rolling into the end zone for a touchback. When you consider Mesko kicked the ball from his 25, the actual distance on the punt was 71 yards. It goes in the books as a 62-yarder given the line of scrimmage from where the ball was snapped. It would have been nice from Mesko’s standpoint if the ball could have been downed before reaching the end zone but it’s still a good kick. 42-yards on the net. Mesko has never had a punt returned for a TD in his NFL career. I wonder what he stores in the fanny pack?

2. Mesko’s second punt came in garbage time. Both teams had inserted backup quarterbacks at this point (Mallett for the Pats and Clemens for the Rams). With 5:24 left in the game and the Pats up 45-7, Mesko’s 51-yard punt to the STL 19 was another nice boot. A 12-yard return by Austin Pettis was called back on a hold which means Mesko’s net matched the gross. 51 and 51.

The Sound of a Punt:
Unfortunately, I couldn’t gain access to a Pats feed of the game so the S-O-P this week comes from the Rams radio team of Steve Savard and D’Marco Farr. The clip below is the call of Mesko’s first punt. It was carried on WXOS-FM (101 ESPN) in St. Louis.

The Punt-osis:
Mesko can really launch ‘em. He’s playing for an organization that values the punt and teaches effective coverage schemes. Remember, Belichick used to be a special teams coach. It’s well within reason to think Mesko will have a long career in Beantown. He’s smart, talented and involved in the community. When one looks for stories about realization of the American dream, why not consider Mesko’s incredible journey from young boy in Romania to academic and athletic success here in the U-S of A. The machine-like march of New England’s offense limits Mesko’s opportunities but he has fully capitalized when snapped the ball. He seemed to embrace the trip to London. Not everyone does. The best part of this dud of a mismatch was the amusing Gronk TD celebration mimicking the Queen’s Guard.

Next week’s Punter of the Week:
Mat McBriar – Philadelphia Eagles