Gost is back: Two-year deal

[Froob]

I'm surprised Bears didn't make a better effort. They just saw how much it hurts to have a really bad kicker. Decade ago it seemed like it wasn't that difficult to find a reliable kicker, for whatever reason it's tough to find one nowadays and these young kickers haven't been great.

 

[sportnik]

He wasn't great last year but seems like a fair deal

I'd love to know what Ghost has on BB. That is a horrible deal. They are paying Ghost as if he is the second best kicker in the league when his performance is decidedly mediocre. Ghost was 19th in field goal percentage last year. He cost the Pats a trip to the 15 Super Bowl & his missed extra points in the 16 & 17 Superbowls.

He's done nothing to justify being paid like the second best kicker in the league. For that kind of money, they should have signed Jason Myers, who Seattle signed for less on a per year basis.

 

[borg]

If the reported contract numbers 2/$8.5 mill are accurate, big win for the Pats.
Retention of a bonafide NFL kicker on a slightly reduced contract during Brady's limited window......win win.
Given how awful several kickers performed this past year directly resulting in crushing losses....I expected the Ghost market to be strong and I certainly expected Ghost to be able to secure a longer term contract.
I can only offer guesses why he didn't:
1) Maybe he only wants to play 2 more years
2) Maybe his desire to stay in NE trumps all else
3) Maybe he believes contract duration is irrelevant given the extreme need for kickers no matter their age
4) Maybe he has a bad agent
5) Maybe his knuckleball kicks frighten execs beyond NE borders as well.

We all have to remember.....this is not supposed to be easy and expecting perfection is Felgerian to the core.

 

[borg]

I'd love to know what Ghost has on BB. That is a horrible deal. They are paying Ghost as if he is the second best kicker in the league when his performance is decidedly mediocre. Ghost was 19th in field goal percentage last year. He cost the Pats a trip to the 15 Super Bowl & his missed extra points in the 16 & 17 Superbowls.

He's done nothing to justify being paid like the second best kicker in the league. For that kind of money, they should have signed Jason Myers, who Seattle signed for less on a per year basis.

Market forces / Supply and Demand / the reality of Free agency...it's not hard to figure out.

 

[luuked]

Putting him above Adam? Adam and those last second kicks, man I don't know if anybody else makes that snow bowl kick.

The better overall stats, the fact he actually can do kickoffs at an elite levevl and that he did it all outside through his entire career give him the nod over Vinateri.

Both are great kickers which just shows how absolutely blessed we have been and explains how some here have lost perspective what bad kicking looks like.

 

[luuked]

He cost the Pats a trip to the 15 Super Bowl & his missed extra points in the 16 & 17 Superbowls.

He cost this team as much a trip to a SB in 15 as Bradys INTs in Denver cost them that trip. Scapegoating at its best. For every time you make him out to be the reason for failure there are far worse mistakes by that guy everyone considers the GOAT as well.

The last time Ghost actually cost them a game was the missed GW kick against Arizona in 2012.

 

[FreeTedWilliams]

Super Bowl history...

Super Bowl 5: Colts rookie kicker Jim O'Brien kicked a 32-yard field goal with 5 seconds left to beat Dallas 16-13.

Super Bowl 25: Scott Norwood 47 yard field goal, less than a minute left: WIDE RIGHT

Super Bowl 36: Adam Vinatieri's 48-yard attempt with 7 seconds left: GOOD right down the middle

Super Bowl: Ray Finkle misses a FG with no time left: LACES OUT DAN!

Super Bowl 38: Vinatieri for a 41-yard try with 9 seconds left: GOOD!

Super Bowl 53: Gostkowski 42 yard try with 1:09 left: GOOD !

You never know how someone is going to react under pressure, Gostkowski has already faced that pressure and nailed it, you really cant put a price on that.

 

[TBR]

You quoted facts. How can facts be disingenuous?

The best kickers miss at least 10% of the time. You just choose to only count those and assume the snap and hold is always perfect for him.

Case in point. You don’t get to omit very relevant facts and then proceed to act as if merely citing half the story is fine because “facts”.

 

[Simpelton]

I'm surprised Bears didn't make a better effort. They just saw how much it hurts to have a really bad kicker. Decade ago it seemed like it wasn't that difficult to find a reliable kicker, for whatever reason it's tough to find one nowadays and these young kickers haven't been great.

The ante has been raised on kicking because despite the league's emphasis on offense defenses are making gains. The difference between making 3 points on a drive vs making nothing is significant enough to decide ballgames and always has been but it seems to me that it's clear that that significance is increasing, not decreasing, as defenses get bigger and faster.

Also right now as things stand most of the league's elite QBs are young and not all that experienced. Rodgers, Brees, Rivers, Brady and Roethlisberger are all on the back 9. The Manning brothers are effectively out of the picture. Mahomes, Watson, Mayfield, are still to some degree inexperienced and of those guys only Mahomes has really entered his prime yet. Jimmy G sputtered out due to injury and is in flux at the moment. Wentz and Mariota are in that category as well. There are very few QBs that are actually elite and in their prime right now. That does mean additional onus on the supplemental scoring when these inexperienced superstars make mistakes or can't seal the deal, the same way it did when it was Brady and Vinatieri.

 

[luuked]

I'm surprised Bears didn't make a better effort. They just saw how much it hurts to have a really bad kicker. Decade ago it seemed like it wasn't that difficult to find a reliable kicker, for whatever reason it's tough to find one nowadays and these young kickers haven't been great.

It is because our expectations have moved about what a reliable kicker is:

 

[WaterfallJumper]

Case in point. You don’t get to omit very relevant facts and then proceed to act as if merely citing half the story is fine because “facts”.

Right back at you. Look at the snap on the miss against Philly and tell me you honestly believe it was his fault the field goal operation failed.

 

[DaBronxPats14]

Good to have Ghost back and Ryan Allen too. They've been there, done that and in 53 Allen came up Huge and Ghost did what needed to be done, Ice It!

 

[Crazy Patriot Guy]

He cost this team as much a trip to a SB in 15 as Bradys INTs in Denver cost them that trip. Scapegoating at its best. For every time you make him out to be the reason for failure there are far worse mistakes by that guy everyone considers the GOAT as well.

The last time Ghost actually cost them a game was the missed GW kick against Arizona in 2012.

This. It's ridiculous how any miss by Ghost at any point of a game means he's the reason we lost, but Brady and the rest of the team were apparently perfect every time.

 

[luuked]

This. It's ridiculous how any miss by Ghost at any point of a game means he's the reason we lost, but Brady and the rest of the team were apparently perfect every time.

For some reason context when it comes to mistakes only matters selectively.

 

[luuked]

Right back at you. Look at the snap on the miss against Philly and tell me you honestly believe it was his fault the field goal operation failed.

I just cant take people serious that blame Ghost for this.

 

[TommyD4207]

Putting him above Adam? Adam and those last second kicks, man I don't know if anybody else makes that snow bowl kick.

You want to talk about missing chippies in Super Bowls?

Let me direct you to Super Bowl 38, where he missed two chippies, FORCING the Patriots to have a GW Drive in that one, thankfully Kasay kicked the kickoff out of bounds.

Should never have been in that situation, should have been a 2 score game.

 

[RobertWeathers]

I'd love to know what Ghost has on BB. That is a horrible deal. They are paying Ghost as if he is the second best kicker in the league when his performance is decidedly mediocre. Ghost was 19th in field goal percentage last year. He cost the Pats a trip to the 15 Super Bowl & his missed extra points in the 16 & 17 Superbowls.

He's done nothing to justify being paid like the second best kicker in the league. For that kind of money, they should have signed Jason Myers, who Seattle signed for less on a per year basis.

Jason Myers has done jack ****. Paying him $4m? Please.

Kickers miss kicks. Kickers miss kicks in the playoffs. Its a fact. AV has missed 14 kicks in the playoffs.

Here is your answer...

Gost in the playoffs:
96% XP
89% FG

Reminder: He cliched the SB w/ a minute left from 41yds out.

Short memory you have.

 

[Froob]

You want to talk about missing chippies in Super Bowls?

Let me direct you to Super Bowl 38, where he missed two chippies, FORCING the Patriots to have a GW Drive in that one, thankfully Kasay kicked the kickoff out of bounds.

Should never have been in that situation, should have been a 2 score game.

Wasn't one of them blocked?

 

[Pape]

He cost this team as much a trip to a SB in 15 as Bradys INTs in Denver cost them that trip. Scapegoating at its best. For every time you make him out to be the reason for failure there are far worse mistakes by that guy everyone considers the GOAT as well.

The last time Ghost actually cost them a game was the missed GW kick against Arizona in 2012.

There is a major difference between playing offense and making mistakes and effing it up in the kicking game.

When Gostkowski missed that extra point in the denver game, it caused undue pressure on the offense to convert a 2 point conversion against an excellent defense at the end of the game.

 

[Pape]

You want to talk about missing chippies in Super Bowls?

Let me direct you to Super Bowl 38, where he missed two chippies, FORCING the Patriots to have a GW Drive in that one, thankfully Kasay kicked the kickoff out of bounds.

Should never have been in that situation, should have been a 2 score game.

one of those kicks was blocked.