Placekicking typically garners most of the attention (and this blog is equally guilty), however kickoffs are just as important within the game of football. From a numbers standpoint, net distance and opponents' average starting position are the key team statistics. But since we're here to focus on the kickers rather than the coverage team, we'll take a look at the more individualized statistic of touchbacks.
After the first eight weeks of the 2009 NFL season, following are the top dozen touchback totals:
17 David Buehler, Dallas
13 Stephen Gostkowski, New England
12 Michael Koenen, Atlanta
12 Olindo Mare, Seattle
12 Thomas Morstead, New Orleans
11 Rhys Lloyd, Carolina
11 Neil Rackers, Arizona
9 Matt Prater, Denver
9 Josh Scobee, Jacksonville
8 Sebastian Janikowski, Oakland
7 David Akers, Philadelphia
7 Pat McAfee, Indianapolis
Two of those are designated kickoff specialists (Buehler & Lloyd), the only such two in the league. Three are punters (Koenen, Morstead, & McAfee). Three are rookies (Buehler, Morstead, & McAfee). Mare has been around the longest, having entered the NFL in 1997.
After the Panthers demonstrated last year that finding and rostering a kickoff specialist can pay dividends, the Cowboys decided to give it a try this year. Some questioned their drafting of David Buehler in the fifth round, however he now sits atop the list. Dallas head coach Wade Phillips noted:
"That's what we envisioned, and that's the only reason we drafted him and the only reason he's playing. He's proven he could do that. Field position, we know, is a big key. And he's provided a lot of that just on touchbacks."
Buehler's big leg had been evident in college, but as he notes, that is only part of the equation in the pros:
"Direction is a lot bigger in the NFL than it was at USC. I pretty much had free reign to kick the hell out of it. The coaches might say aim more right, but if it goes down the middle and it's a touchback, who cares? But [special teams coordinator] Joe DeCamillis is really strict about direction. I've been working on that. When I'm told to hit it right, hit it right. If I'm told to hit it left, I want a touchback but in the left corner."
Distance and direction account for two of the dimensions. Stephen Gostkowski, currently second on the touchbacks list, discussed the third and fourth dimensions - height and time:
“I focus more on hang time than anything. And a lot of times, when I focus on hang time and hitting a good ball, it goes farther anyway. I don’t try to just drive it through the end zone. I just try to make good contact, and aim where I’m trying to aim and give the 10 guys running down there running their butts off the best chance to make a play inside the 25-[yard line]. I pride myself on getting good hang time and giving guys a lot of time to get down there and make a play. You can get in trouble if you try to just drive it down there. If you drive it, you better kick it out of the end zone. You can get in trouble with the low line driver.”