Gostkowski Appreciation Thread...

[Patriots4Ever]

Didnt see much posted on this,so I figured I'd drop it down.The Ghost Looked real good this weekend.He nailed his first 50+ Career FG.The first he fired looked to be good for another 5 yards easy,But that was taken away do to the time out.So,big deal.He goes back and slams the 2nd in.I think he did a stellar job considering the Change of Field surface.

 

[Rob0729]

You gotta give props to the guy who kicked the first Patriot 50+ yard field goal since 2002. I loved what Adam did for our team, but once it got cold he was a crap shoot when it came to field goal attempts over 40 yards the last few years. Gostkowski hasn't shown he can kick in the clutch yet, but his kick offs and long field goals are pieces that were missing the last few years with Vinatieri.

Personally, give me a guy who can kick off deep and make the long field goals over a guy who is clutch any day. It has been over a year since we were in the position where our kicker was making a kick to win the game.

Gostkowski still need to show some more consistency, but overall I have been pleased with his kicking.

 

[TeamPats]

Now obviously the first attempt was slightly wide right (though Joe Buck seemed to miss this obvious fact). But is it just me or would that kick, had it turned left and been through the up rights, been good from about 70 yards? I mean that thing had barely started coming down and was a good half way up the uprights when it went wide right. Just saying, this kid has a boot like nothing I've seen.

He is 2nd in the NFL on kickoffs and that is only to Denver where obviously they have an unfair advantage (This was said in another thread, I would reference but I forget where or who)

 

[nukin]

You gotta give props to the guy who kicked the first Patriot 50+ yard field goal since 2002. I loved what Adam did for our team, but once it got cold he was a crap shoot when it came to field goal attempts over 40 yards the last few years. Gostkowski hasn't shown he can kick in the clutch yet, but his kick offs and long field goals are pieces that were missing the last few years with Vinatieri.

Personally, give me a guy who can kick off deep and make the long field goals over a guy who is clutch any day. It has been over a year since we were in the position where our kicker was making a kick to win the game.

Gostkowski still need to show some more consistency, but overall I have been pleased with his kicking.

I disagree. I think a clutch kicker is ALL you need. Given that it rarely comes down to it, I would rather have a kicker who can boot it through easy rather then a kicker who can kick it ten more yards out. What if he chokes?

Other then that, Gost has definitly lived up to my expectations so far - minus a game winning FG which is what I'm waiting for.

 

[zippo59]

If he continues on this path then we have found our kicker for the next ten years.

 

[Rob0729]

I disagree. I think a clutch kicker is ALL you need. Given that it rarely comes down to it, I would rather have a kicker who can boot it through easy rather then a kicker who can kick it ten more yards out. What if he chokes?

Other then that, Gost has definitly lived up to my expectations so far - minus a game winning FG which is what I'm waiting for.

I think clutch kickers are overrated. Yeah, Vinatieri had the game winning kick against the Falcons last year. But if you can't make a 29 yard kick in a dome even with the game on the line, you shouldn't be kicking in the NFL. I would say that 90% of the NFL kickers could have made that clutch kick in their sleep.

As you said, clutch kick attempts rarely happen. Then why is it all you need? A team has far more field goal attempts over 40 yards in a season than last second field goal kicks. Many times, a 46 yard field goal in the first quarter can be the difference in winning or losing a game. Just because a field goal comes in the first quarter doesn't mean that it isn't as important as a kick with the game on the line. So I would rather have a guy who can make a 46 yarder than a guy who can make the kick with the game on the line.

I think Vinatieri hurt us last year on kick offs because his kicks were typically low with no hang time last year. Also, we went for it on fourth down or punted in 40+ yard field goal range last year a bit which means that Belichick might not have been confident in Vinatieri's kicks. Granted he has not been confident in Gostkowski at times this year, but he is still a rookie who needs to earn Belichick's respect.

 

[MDD]

I don't even think Vinatieri himself could have continued a near-perfect record of "clutchness". We had to make the switch at some point. I would have preferred 2 kickers this year to ease the transition but Gostkowski should be ok.

 

[The Gr8est]

It was too bad that Corey fumbled on that last drive. On top of his 52-yarder, it would have been an nice opportunity to add a semi-pressure kick to ice a big game and build confidence.

Don't forget also that Ghost was kicking with a new holder and there was an adjustment to be made there.

Overall I am optomistic about Ghost's future in NE.

 

[JoeSixPat]

What I want to know is, where is the "JoeSixPat Appreciation Thread"?

 

[chunkypony]

I am giving him all the credit in the world. I hope the coaching squad sees more confidence in him, and we stop going for it on 4th down, because I feel like that is something that could cost us LARGE at some point this season. Let the kid kick.

 

[5 Rings for Brady!!]

Clutch kicking cannot possibly be overrated! I dislike Adam for what he has decided to become, as in the 'enemy', but he was clutch when we needed it.

Ghost could end up being clutch as well, and Adam left town of his own free will, after we kept trying to keep him here for several years through the franchise tag.

But come on, how could clutch kicking not be important?

It so happens that Ghost does everything else better than Adam at this stage in their respective careers, and the clutch aspect will show up with more and more experience.

 

[Rob0729]

Never said it wasn't important. I just say it is overrated. Kick off ability and long field goals are just more important. The average kicker is in a clutch kicking situation once every year or more likely every couple of years. Kickers kick off at least once every game. Most kickers make a half dozen to a dozen kick attempts over 40 yards in a season, sometimes more.

Clutch kicking just doesn't affect many games. Kick off kicking affects every game to a certain extent. Long field goal kicking doesn't affect every game, but a heck of a lot more than clutch kicking.

Clutch kicking is only important if the team is in a clutch kicking situation. We have gone 24 games (including the playoffs) without a single clutch kicking situation. That is almost a season and a half. That is why clutch kicking is overrated.

 

[BelichickFan]

Clutch kicking is an inexact science for sure. We can say Vinatieri is a good clutch kicker. But we can't say he's better than many others because they haven't had the chances (don't forget, Vinatieri missed two SB kicks and a playoff kick vs. Denver last year btw).

OK, so Vinatieri has kicked two SB game winners. But how many kickers would have done the same if given the opportunity ?

 

[PatsFaninAZ]

OK, so Vinatieri has kicked two SB game winners. But how many kickers would have done the same if given the opportunity ?

Well, what we do know is that other thant Vinatieri's two attempts, only one other kicker has ever done it and he only did it once and it was 35 years ago (and only 32 yards). The one other guy to have a chance missed.

Vinatieri was clutch not just in those 2 superbowls but in several other situations as well, most notably the Oakland game.

 

[PatsFanInVa]

Adam had dropped off, both clutch and non-clutch.

I've said since the pre-season, the Vinatieri departure was the least important one we faced. When all is said and done, a kicker is a kicker. Adam was a great guy to have on hand, when the game was always on the line... he was the ultimate tie-breaker. The lessons are:

1) The tie-breaker can be replaced with another good tie-breaker (maybe not as good as Adam in his prime, but better than Adam in 2005 and probably beyond); and

2) You can avoid needing the tie-breaker when you win by more.

AV was one signature aspect of those teams from 2001-2004 that makes the NFL Films highlights so damn cool. Cue dramatic music. Cue NFL Films Voiceover Guy. "Perhaps the most important kick in history; perhaps the most important human action in history..."

Of course he's missed. But of course, he's missed. A lot. Lately.

So anyway, welcome, Gost, and thanks for the strong leg... the era of shallow kickoffs looks to be over, and the era of 50+ field goals beginning.

PFnV

 

[AzPatsFan]

The four point differentail between the Pats and Bears were ALL scored off the foot off Casper the Ghost ! Who says he hasn't made clutch kicks?

The biggest game of the year against a team we may see in the Superbowl and Ghost is a perfect 3 for 3 on his kicks 2 PATs and a 52 yard FG.

 

[nukin]

The four point differentail between the Pats and Bears were ALL scored off the foot off Casper the Ghost ! Who says he hasn't made clutch kicks?

The biggest game of the year against a team we may see in the Superbowl and Ghost is a perfect 3 for 3 on his kicks 2 PATs and a 52 yard FG.

Well, it's easy to say that those were clutch after the game - they were not game winning, just game... helping. Game winning would of been if we were down 1 or 2 points and he boots one in. THAT is clutch, is it not?

 

[ctpatsfan77]

Darnit. I KNEW I forgot to post something. [If you don't understand, turn on sigs. ]

I am giving him all the credit in the world. I hope the coaching squad sees more confidence in him, and we stop going for it on 4th down, because I feel like that is something that could cost us LARGE at some point this season. Let the kid kick.

Keep in mind there IS one disincentive to trying for the 3:

Let's say it's 4th and 2 from the 30. If you turn the ball over on downs, your opponents get the ball on their own 30. If you go for the kick and miss, they get the ball from the spot of the kick--i.e., their own 37.

So, clutch kicker or no, that has to be taken into account.

 

[smg93]

Nice Job Gostkowski!