TSR’s Punter of the Week:
Brandon Fields – Miami Dolphins

Who is he?
In his sixth full season, Fields leads the NFL in gross average (50.6 yards per punt). His net number (41.4) is tenth overall. Only 28 years old, Fields’ stats have always been good. If you watch punters much, I believe you’d rank Fields among the top five in the league no matter where he is statistically. An all-state punter in high school, Fields excelled at Michigan State as a punter and was drafted in the seventh round of the 2007 NFL draft. At 6-5, 245, Fields is bigger than most guys at the position. Fields and his wife oversee a charitable organization that promotes children’s fitness programs including an annual summer camp in his hometown of Toledo, OH.

The Fields stat line vs. the Patriots 12-2-12:
Five punts (plus one “aborted“). 259 yards total. 51.8 yards per. 42.8 net.

The punts in detail:
1. It was a nightmarish start for Fields in this game. A disaster. After the Fish went three and out to open the contest, Fields came out for his first punt with the ball on Miami’s own 22. Fields wears small white sweatbands on both wrists. His snug, tucked-in jersey reveals a stocky frame. Fields has both a moustache and beard. As the play clock wound down under 15 seconds, Fields licked his right hand and started barking out false snap directives in an effort to pull the receiving team over the line prematurely. He also included theatrical moves to make it look like he was about to get the snap. The Pats didn’t bite. Long snapper John Denney finally fired the ball a tick before the play clock hit zero. The snap was low. Fields reached for it just above ankle height but it slipped through his hands. It had rained a few minutes earlier so perhaps the ball had a little moisture on it. There was also a pretty good wind off the water (out of the east) at 18 MPH. Still, the football hit firm and square on the palms of Fields’ hands and should have been caught. To compound the mistake, Fields panicked excessively in the immediate aftermath of the drop. The ball sat in easy reach but Fields appeared to dwell on a yet-to-develop punt rush when he should have grabbed it and quick-kicked it. But because he focused on what was in front of him rather than the ball, he dropped it a second time. By the time Fields gained control of the football, a swarm of Patriots defenders had honed in on him. He was gang-tackled at the 12 yard line. The journeyman Pats linebacker Mike Rivera got a pretty good shot in on Fields before he crumpled to the ground. As Fields walked back to the bench shaking his head in frustration, a piece of sod could be seen wedged in his facemask. The official NFL terminology for such a play is an “aborted punt.” As such, it isn’t noted for the record as a punt and the outcome of the play doesn’t impact any of Fields‘ punter stats. It goes in the books as a rushing attempt with no gain. Fields is also credited with a fumble. The ten-yard loss on the play isn’t linked directly to Fields. The bottom line is that the Patriots scored a touchdown six plays later. The Fields fumble set a bad tone for the game and responsibility for the error rests almost fully with the punter in this instance.

2. Another three and out brought Fields back on the field just three and a half minutes later. The CBS cameras had repeatedly showed Fields on the sidelines after the fumble. Lots of sports television producers fixate on the bogey-man of the moment and that‘s what CBS did with Fields after the early miscue. Denney went high with the snap this time around. It was almost too high. Fields pulled it down and blasted it with his right foot. The ball traveled 71 yards in the air. Pats returner Julian Edelman appeared to be a bit tentative after fielding the rock at his own 17. He went down easy after a ten-yard return. Ten days earlier, Edelman was concussed on a dirty helmet-to-helmet hit by LeRon Landry of the Jets. It was the most excessively violent play I’ve seen in the NFL this season and you wonder how Edelman can continue to play with his trademark lack of fear after getting so badly speared in the head. Not to mention what kind of long term issues Edelman will suffer from by facing more contact so soon after getting knocked silly. The Fields punt was 58 yards. 48 on the net.

3. Still in the first quarter and the Fish still had trouble moving the ball much, so Fields came out for a pooch from midfield. The snap was perfect. Fields hit it hard but with a low trajectory. Edelman wanted no part of it. It skidded forward after bouncing at the 13 and raced toward the goal line. Dolphins gunner Jimmy Wilson did a nice job catching up with the swift-moving ball and stopped it at the three with a slick between-the-legs swat. It was a 42-yard punt with no return. It was a nice pin job by Fields although unconventional for its straight-ahead line-drive direction.

4. The sun came out in South Florida as Fields let loose a boomer early in the second half. The 60-yarder was deep but short on hang so Edelman had lots of open field when he grabbed it at his own 16. Again, Edelman went down soft after a 15-yard return. 60 yards on the punt. 45 on the net. Fields’ shoes don’t match so I’m assuming the one on his right foot is a special punting shoe. Who knows?

5. The Dolphins kept a pretty good lid on Brady and were in this game late. Fields did a great job helping his team in the field position battle after blowing the snap to start the game. On his fourth punt of the game with seven minutes to go in the third quarter, Fields launched the perfect coffin corner special. Welker replaced Edelman on the return and pretended to set up for the return. Instead, he let it bounce inside the five. It squirted almost straight left (as Fields is facing it) and went out of bounds at the two. That’s what they call the C-C on Ice. The coffin corner has gone out of vogue but Fields nailed this one. 47-yard punt, no return and a tight spot for Brady to open a drive.

6. The final Fields punt of the game again came with the ball at midfield but this one went straight into the end zone. I’m not sure what Fields was doing with this one. It was a straight shot that rolled hard into the end zone after landing inside the five. After a beautiful corner job a few minutes earlier, Fields seemed to forget how to execute. It was a 52 yard punt with a touchback.

The Sound of a Punt:
I spaced off my assignment to record the Dolphins radio feed so the cut below is Gumbel and Dierdorf on the CBS call of the crucial fumble by Fields on what was supposed to be his first punt.

The Punt-osis:
The costly Fields fumble to start the game was the first of his professional career. His performance following the flub reveals a solid mental approach to the game. We already know he’s among the top five legs in the game and there’s no question Fields has staying power in the league. From the perspective of someone who enjoys the art of punting, Fields is fascinating given the way he alters his approach to similar situations. His routine is varied and his pooch technique changes as he goes. The four-year contract extension (potentially worth $13.3 million) Fields signed during camp this past summer includes three-mil guaranteed. At last tally, Fields led all AFC punters in the fan component of the Pro Bowl balloting. Fields will shake off this fumble and continue launching big ones for a team that needs all the field position help it can get.

Next week’s Punter of the Week:
Pat McAfee – Indianapolis Colts