Pats worked out PK Nick Novak today

[BPF]

Source: Patriots working out Nick Novak today | National Football Post

The New England Patriots worked out veteran kicker Nick Novak today, according to a league source with knowledge of the situation.

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[BelichickFan]

Is he a good kickoff guy ? Graham has been fine overall but I'd love to use a roster spot on a second kicker IF he can put a few in the end zone - edit, just checked his career stats.

PASS.

 

[ctpatsfan77]

Is he a good kickoff guy ? Graham has been fine overall but I'd love to use a roster spot on a second kicker IF he can put a few in the end zone - edit, just checked his career stats.

PASS.

I'm guessing this would be a "Rolodex" workout, nothing more.

 

[WhiZa]

Is he a good kickoff guy ? Graham has been fine overall but I'd love to use a roster spot on a second kicker IF he can put a few in the end zone - edit, just checked his career stats.

PASS.

Interesting thought. The Jets and Baltimore are top 6 in the league in kick return average and we will likely we will be playing one of them next week.

In a related note the Chiefs and Colts are in the bottom 5 for kick return average.

 

[BelichickFan]

I'm guessing this would be a "Rolodex" workout, nothing more.

Yeah, I was hoping he was a kickoff stud but he has one touchback EVER (in the NFL).

 

[Mack Herron]

Another FLorida Tusker and UFL distance record holder (54yds). Due diligence? A possible replacement for Wright's roster spot?

 

[BrainTrust66]

Reiss has talked about this before. Often times, especially in a bye week, the Pats will routinely work guys out even if they don't have a specific need at that time. It's all part of their due diligence process in case disaster should strike.

Graham has done well for the Pats but I'll be less confident than normal if he lines up for a key field goal in the playoffs. No rap on him, he's been great, just missing my Gost security blanket!

Graham has kind of been a lost hero this season. Yeah, his kick-off's leave a lot to be desired but he's hit the field goals when asked and the loss of Gost hasn't been noticeable. Then again, leads of 20+ points in the 4th quarter haven't hurt either!

 

[jah]

Novak is terrible. I hope we don't sign him.

 

[The Brandon Five]

Reiss has talked about this before. Often times, especially in a bye week, the Pats will routinely work guys out even if they don't have a specific need at that time. It's all part of their due diligence process in case disaster should strike.

Graham has done well for the Pats but I'll be less confident than normal if he lines up for a key field goal in the playoffs. No rap on him, he's been great, just missing my Gost security blanket!

Graham has kind of been a lost hero this season. Yeah, his kick-off's leave a lot to be desired but he's hit the field goals when asked and the loss of Gost hasn't been noticeable. Then again, leads of 20+ points in the 4th quarter haven't hurt either!

Gost missed three FG's this year. Graham has not missed. I think the bigger issue is his kickoff ability (or lack thereof).

 

[RayClay]

Graham has a respectable amount of kickoffs career wise. Maybe the layoff caused him to lose a little. A bye week could put a little zip in his leg.

Gost has an extraordinarily strong leg, we have to accept there's not a replacement, especially an available one.

 

[BPF]

I think what Graham lacks in distance on his kickoffs he makes up for in height. If you look at his career return avg against you'll find that it's pretty comparable to Gostokowski and Vinatieiri. The obvious difference is touchbacks between Graham and Gost, Graham has 48 in 10 yrs and Gost 80 in half the time. But in comparison Vinatieri has 88 TB's in 15 yrs.

Graham
Career
KO RET AVG
61.4 21.8

w/Pats
61.8 21.2

Gostokowski
KO RET AVG
65.6 23

Vinatieiri
KO RET AVG
63 22.2

I think this Novak workout was for emergency list and a look towards competition for camp for 2011. Sometimes PK's take time to develop and Novak could be worth a look for next season in case Gostokowski can't come back 100% early on.

 

[Metaphors]

Mesko has a big leg. How hard can it be to kick relatively straight off a tee?

 

[DaBruinz]

I'll be honest.. While Graham's kicks haven't been as long as Gostkowski's, the average return has been lower for opponents.. I think that Novak is more of a "Rolodex" issue since there aren't many good kickers available and the Pats have already lost the best one..

 

[TB146]

I've noticed that very few of Graham's kick offs are touch backs, which can be worrisome against good kick returners. However, I don't know how his hang time compares. If the kick coverage team has enough time to get down the field before the ball comes down, it doesn't matter if it's not in the end zone.

The ideal kickoff would come down inside the five and would have a lengthy hang time (what... 4.5, 5 seconds? I don't know what's reasonable to expect...)

 

[102 Pat]

Like BPF mentioned, he's getting good height. Someone, maybe here or Mike Reiss's mailbag wondered about Graham's kickoffs and the response was he's getting good height. I kept this in mnd when watching the game this past sunday and most of the time, there was a Patriot near by when the Bill player caught the ball.

 

[IcyPatriot]

In Bill I trust but I'd be curious to see Zoltan kick off ... he used to do both.

 

[crowell33]

Gost missed three FG's this year. Graham has not missed. I think the bigger issue is his kickoff ability (or lack thereof).

Reality check here, only one of Graham's FG was from 40 yards or longer. Of the Ghosts misses, one was longer than 50 yards and he was 2/3 from over 40.

 

[ahmed]

Given the circumstances, our kicker is great.

 

[DaBruinz]

I've noticed that very few of Graham's kick offs are touch backs, which can be worrisome against good kick returners. However, I don't know how his hang time compares. If the kick coverage team has enough time to get down the field before the ball comes down, it doesn't matter if it's not in the end zone.

The ideal kickoff would come down inside the five and would have a lengthy hang time (what... 4.5, 5 seconds? I don't know what's reasonable to expect...)

How many "good" kick returners are in the play-offs???

Fact is that despite the 6 yard shorter kicks, opposing teams have been gaining 3 yards less per return.