Do the Minnesota Vikings Need to Replace Chris Kluwe?
by Christopher Gates on Apr 5, 2009 3:57 AM CDT
in Minnesota Vikings
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PrintA heads-up before I get to the main article here. If you feel compelled to use racial terms to refer to people, such as. . .oh, I don't know. . .referring to Tarvaris Jackson as "tar baby," then don't be surprised to find that you've been banned the next time you're stupid enough to try to show your face here. It's right in the community guidelines that you should take two or three seconds to read when you become a member of the site.
1) Racist and sexist speech and/or behavior will absolutely, positively not be tolerated
This is non-negotiable. If I see a member referring to anyone in a racist or sexist manner, they're done here. There will be no warnings, there will be no "strikes," and there will be no appeals. I don't care if you're the newest member of DN or if you've been here since the beginning. There's absolutely, positively no room for that sort of behavior on this website, and there never will be.
So there you go. I've seen that sort of thing tolerated by the racist filth at Packer Report and other such places in the past. . .it won't be tolerated here.
Onward to the main thrust of today's missive.
While constructing Friday's post about the differences between the Chicago defense and the Minnesota defense. . .you know, the one that illustrates just how much better the Vikings' defense is. . .I wondered about exactly how much of this was the result of the Vikings' punt coverage in 2008 and how much was the result of the play of punter Chris Kluwe.
While I don't remember every single punt that Kluwe launched in 2008, I remember the four that opposing returners brought back for touchdowns. They were all low, line drive kicks that went a pretty good distance, but gave the return specialists an ungodly amount of room between the time they caught the ball and the time anyone in purple appeared on the screen. Throw in the dropped snap on a punt against the Bears in the first meeting between Minnesota and Chicago, and one could easily make the argument that Kluwe was single-handedly responsible for allowing more touchdowns than any single player on the Vikings' roster in 2008.
Kluwe was 6th in the NFL in gross punting average in 2008, averaging 47.5 yards per punt. But what was truly gross was the difference between that number and his net average. Kluwe's net punting average was 35.0, a discrepancy of 12.5 yards per attempt. On average, that means opponents gained more than one first down every time the Vikings punted. . .and that number only got worse when opponents actually fielded the punt, as we'll see later. That's one less first down that an opposing offense needs to get, and they're 12.5 yards closer to field goal range than they'd ordinarily be. With a defense as good as Minnesota's is, that's huge. Don't believe me?
-Only three defenses in the NFL gave up fewer first downs in 2008 than Minnesota. . .Baltimore, Pittsburgh, and Philadelphia.
-Only two defenses in the NFL had a lower percentage of third down conversions allowed than Minnesota. . .Pittsburgh and Philadelphia. Baltimore's 34% clip was the same as Minnesota's.
-Only four defenses, not counting TDs allowed on special teams or other situations where the defense wasn't actually on the field, allowed fewer touchdowns than Minnesota's 25. . .Pittsburgh (19), Baltimore (21), Tennessee (24), and Indianapolis (24). That means that, in the NFC, no defense allowed fewer opposing touchdowns than the Vikings did.
As far as the rest of the NFC North in that category, Chicago's defense allowed 37 TDs, Green Bay allowed 42, and Detroit a whopping 56. So, as pointed out the other day, not one defense in the NFC North is remotely close to being in the same league as the Vikings' defense. No reason to expect this to change any time soon, either.
So, what can be done about this? Frankly, the coverage needs to get better. I think we can all agree on that. However, the problem might lie more in the fact that the Chris Kluwe, more often than not, really doesn't give the return team much of a chance. The Atlanta Falcons were really the gold standard for punt coverage in 2008, as they set an NFL record by only allowing 49 yards on punt returns all season long. Let's do a comparison of the numbers between Kluwe and Atlanta's punter, Michael Koenen.
| Punts | Gross | Net | Out of Bounds | Downed | Touchbacks | Fair Catches | Returned | Return Yards | Average/Return | |
| Chris Kluwe | 73 | 47.5 | 35.0 | 5 | 5 | 13 | 8 | 42 | 624 | 14.9 |
| Michael Koenen | 63 | 40.7 | 37.5 | 4 | 8 | 4 | 27 | 20 | 49 | 2.5 |
You can see the huge difference between the Falcons' punt team and the Vikings' punt team. Koenen doesn't necessarily launch the ball like Kluwe does, but he gives his coverage personnel a much better chance to cover the opposing returner than Kluwe does. Opposing returners chose to return 58% of Kluwe's punts in 2008, compared to a 32% clip for Koenen. The Vikings gave up at least four punt returns that covered more distance individually than the Falcons gave up in return yardage all season long. In addition, eight punts out of 73 being fair caught is a ridiculously low number. Koenen's 27, on the other hand, tied him for the NFL lead in that department.
Looking back, Kluwe has had this problem for most of his career. His lowest discrepancy between his gross and net punting averages came in 2006, the year he tied for the second-most punts in the league, and that was still an almost seven yard difference. For his career, he has a gross punting average of 44.5. . .and a net average of 36.0. This absolutely, positively needs to change. Of the three phases of football. . .offense, defense, and special teams. . .it was clearly the special teams, and more specifically the punting unit, that killed the Vikings more than any other in 2008. If they can get that straightened around, they can be a truly elite team.
I'm a huge Chris Kluwe fan, in all honesty. He was probably the team MVP as a rookie for the first half of 2005 when the rest of the team was a disaster and, hey, the guy's a Guitar Hero expert. How can you not respect that? But, honestly, if he can't improve significantly on these numbers next season, maybe it's time for the Beloved Purple to make a change at that position.
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Good post..
Totally agree. I like the guy, but last year was unacceptable. Although some of the blame can definitely be put on the coverage team, he made it almost impossible at times.
by PurplePeopleEaters on Apr 5, 2009 5:45 AM CDT reply actions
Of course your forgetting the
three touchbacks that should have been downed at the 1 in the chicago game at home. those were perfectly kicked balls that all should have been downed, but instead the coverage unit flubbed all three. had we downed those, Kluwes numbers would have looked better.
Will the Real Thor Please Stand Up ... ?
Thanks for mentioning this
That was the first thing I thought of as well. There were a lot of punts that should have been downed inside the 5 last season that were touchbacks. So those numbers look a lot worse for Kluwe than they should have been.
That said for long kicks he should have been pulling up more to give his mediocre coverage unit a better chance at tackling the returner.
Fire Childress!
Where Did He Punt From?
It would be interesting to look at Kluwe’s punts and the Vikings field position when he punted.
If the Vikings were pinned back deep in their own territory say the 15 or 20 yard line, Kluwe may have felt compelled to try to get more distance, which usually means a lower, line drive type of kick. A 65 or 70 yard punt from there that’s returned 15 or 20 yards is still better than a 40 yard punt that’s fair caught.
If the team were closer to midfield when they punted, Kluwe would have the luxury of hanging one up higher, leading to a shorter punt, but one less likely to be returned.
Just some thoughts anyway. Not so much trying to take all of the blame away from Kluwe, but some blame could quite possibly be aimed at our, “Kick Ass Offense” as well.
The Minnesota Vikings - Undefeated in the Playoffs at Lambeau Field!
I don't have a breakdown in front of me
But I’m not sure if the field position matters that much in this case.
If you look at Atlanta’s defense, they’re a fairly pedestrian unit. They were 24th in yards allowed, 21st against the pass, and 25th against the run. Minnesota was 6th in yards allowed, 18th against the pass, and 1st against the run. Yet, as far as points allowed, the Falcons were half a point better than the Vikings were (20.3 to 20.8).
If you take away the five touchdowns that came when the Vikings punt team was on the field in 2008, their points/game average goes from 20.8 down to 18.6.
According to the folks at Football Outsiders, the Vikings allowed an average of 24.34 yards/drive in 2008. That mark was fourth best in the league. Guess which three teams were better? That’s right. . .Pittsburgh (20.60), Baltimore (21.68), and Philadelphia (22.77). So, even if we’re deep in our territory and the punter skies one that the returner needs to fair catch at midfield, on average the opponent is only going to get close enough for a long field goal try.
Now, obviously some of those drives could get turned into touchdowns. . .but given the choice, I’d much rather take our chances with our defense out on the field than with our special teams. Not to mention that big punt returns are momentum and morale killers.
The Daily Norseman - The greatest Vikings' site on the Internet!
by Christopher Gates on Apr 5, 2009 9:13 AM CDT up reply actions
Thanks Gonz
Although I have not noticed it much here, I despise the racial remarks. I’m a T-Jax blaster at times but it is not because of his color.
Let me add. One thing I learned from the Cutler drama is that T-Jax showed a heck of a lot more class when faced with the Farve show, losing his spot to Gus and now bringing in Sage. He never bad mouthed or cried. He took it like a man and continued to work. I saw some flashes of great work when he came back late in the season. It’s not his fault that Chilly is putting him on the hot seat.
I hope he can do well and improve on reading the field. So I’ll just that T-Jax attirude is what will make him successful-not Chilly.
Sorry
That wasn’t about Kluwe. I’m the guy that would hang the jury in this trial. I know he made mistakes that killed us but he is a heck of a kicker. Many good points as to why his stats were down. Thor made a good point. The Saints game made me puke after he gave it to Bush for an almost 3rd TD. I’ll never figure that one out. Why didn’t a ST coach tell a guy in the punt huddle to tell him to kick it out of bounds even if it means we lose a few yards on the punt???
I put most of the blame
on the Coverage Unit for the Saints game as well. Absolutely horrid Lane Discipline. Thats what allowed all three of those great returns. the third one would have been a touch down if Bush hadn’t slipped on his shoe laces.
Now, Kluwe may not have the highest kicks but if we had better Coverage on the field, there would have been a lot fewer big returns. That was our biggest weakness last year (bigger then our QB play), and the FO, for all we like to complaine about them this offseason, they did a lot to address it in FA. Resigning Farwell, and bringing in Paymah and Glenn Holt. Last year we were missing Both Farwell and Michael Boulware. And we had the worst ST coach in the league. I see big improvements form our ST play this year.
And also, I do think that where you punt from will impact how far, and high you kick the ball. you are always trying to pin the opponents back as far as possible, which means when your stalled out at the 25-30 yard line as we so often do in the KAO, you kick teh ball lower and farther, in an attempt to pin them deep. if your coverage maintains good lane discipline, then that should work just fine.
Will the Real Thor Please Stand Up ... ?
by the Real Thor on Apr 5, 2009 11:11 AM CDT up reply actions
Coverage team needs tweaking
I’m glad you said it, TRULY sad when the game ends, you look at your best friend, and say: “Kluwe was the MVP”. He is a hell of a kicker, fact. The coverage team needs WORK, fact. At times he’s part of the problem, he can easily out kick the coverage. In the long run we need to keep him. Hopefully the new ST coach will remind those guys to TACKLE the guy with the football. It should be an area to stress in training camp.
Also,
I would like to see him, not only compared to the player with the very best Net Return yards but also against league average? at least for a point of reference.
Will the Real Thor Please Stand Up ... ?
Averages are so misleading
Whether it’s BB’s yards/reception after catching a 99-yard pass (and not the kind that travels very far in the air, at that) or Kluwe’s 12+ yards difference between net and gross averages, a handful of plays are skewing the averages. To say that …opponents gained more than one first down [12.5 – 14.9 yards] every time the Vikings punted… isn’t accurate because sometimes the opponent gained half as many or even fewer yards while Reggie Bush averaged 35.2 yards in 5 attempts. It takes quite a lot of returns of 9 yards or less to bring down the full effect of Reggie Bush and his mad skills.
By the way, Kluwe’s 47.6 yds/punt is the 16th best single season average of all time. That number doesn’t mean a ton, but the Vikings could certainly do worse, it may be the coverage units as much as Kluwe, and maybe the Vikings shouldn’t be so quick to cut him.
Hey, here’s an idea: why doesn’t the sputtering below-average offense (and especially coaching) step it up so that the team ranks among the ten teams with the fewest punts next year?
A Handful of Plays...
Hardly skews an average. BB has 20.1 ypc with the 99 yarder and 18.2 without; it just not a grostesque difference. Kluwe needs to learn how to kick situationally. The fact that returners were able to elect to return so many punts is indisputable.
+/- 2 y/rec
That is a big enough difference to drop half of the top 10 in that category out of it, and BB had his boosted that much by one play. Maybe Calvin Johnson was only a 60-yd TD away from being in the Pro Bowl.
Let’s suppose that BB had 6 other plays, not of 99 yds, but 40+ (which he did). What’s his real y/rec, those 7 plays aside? Assuming that the other 6 were only 241 yards together, that would leave him with 41 catches for a maximum of 624 yards and a yd/rec average no more than 15.2 yd/rec on more than 85% of his plays.
So taking out the biggest plays shows he then about number 11 in yard per reception for players with 40+ catches. But then, I think you still miss the point. You can manipulate any stat if you take away the ones that prove it wrong. Take out his best plays and he is still really good and a deep threat. When you take out his 7 worse plays, where he probably gained anywhere from negative yardage to 10 yards, and I bet his yd/rec average goes up even more.
I've never argued that Berrian wasn't a good receiver or a deep threat
…but rather the fact that Childress & Bevell did not throw downfield nearly as much as these stats make them appear to have done. The mean average is misleading that way.
Advanced Football Stats has something better (air yards). Their way, nobody needs to take away any good plays, just the YAC to show where the receivers caught the ball, on average. It’s a very useful stat in tandem with receptions/targets because together, one would have a clearer picture of who benefitted from dinks and dunks vs. another who had the same or better rec/targ% while catching the ball around 11-12 or 16-20 yards downfield.
Again, what does it matter where they catch it on the field? Maybe it matters to coaches in deciding what routes they should run for certain receivers, but other wise what does it really say? If all you are worried about doing is throwing it down field, watch the Saints. They try throwing it down the field all the time. and it got them a 8-8 record and no playoff games (and a loss to the Vikings). So what if the Vikings don’t throw it down field more than a hand full of times a game? Got them a 10-6 Division Championship and entrance to the playoffs and I will take that over most down field passes every year.
Most downfield passes?
I couldn’t care less about who throws the most passes downfield.
This was a discussion about averages being misleading. For instance, you said (perhaps in a different thread) that the Vikings throw downfield plenty based on Berrians Y/REC when, in fact, he did not receive close to 18 yards on most receptions nor were his 7 long receptions of 40+ due to throwing downfield, either. It is a perfect example of how meaningless and far off a mean average is for these sorts of conclusions.
Well you seem to care since you keep bringing up “airtime stats”, reception stats subtracting the YAC, and manipulating Berrian’s stats to try and show that they don’t pass down field as often as you like. Instead of all that, why not just find a stat that breakdown how often the Vikings, or any team, pass to different quadrants of the field and create an argument based on that instead of going through how the WRs performed?
I still contend that averages are decent sources for info. If I asked you what to expect out of Berrian in his next game, how you go about getting that info? Personally, I would take last years stats and average then out per game (3 catches, 60 yards and 1/2 a TD) and use that as a basis. Sure there are other factors that could affect his performance, but the averages get you to a starting point. All the other stats you have been bringing up give incomplete results. Sure the ball travels (on average!) 8 yards down the field before its caught, but the play doesn’t end just because it is caught. YAC figures heavily into how good your WR and offense as a whole are (are guys getting put in chances to do more with the ball?) so you can’t cut it out and treat it like it doesn’t make a difference. At worst, an average can give solid ground in starting to evaluate how well/bad a player is.
No one is saying that Berrian is guaranteed to get 18 yards every time he catches the ball, nor was I saying that the Vikings throw it a lot down field because Berrian got 20.1 yards/rec. (I think that got started in a different thread about DHB who you considered a deep threat and a good match for the Vikings, thought I would still argue that with his inconsistent hands the Vikings should just stay away from him altogether. There are plenty of guys without questionable hands and fast 40s). The Vikings have a guy that can get vertical on defenses and that defenses have to look out for (Berrian) and could use a weapon at receiver that does more than run down field and jump for the ball.
Bipolar distribution
Look that up if you’re not familiar with the term.
Averages can be incredibly misleading. There have been pitchers with an ERA under 4.00 who had posted an ERA of 4.00+ in most of their starts (and an ERA significantly lower than 4.00 in most of the other starts), therefore almost never being a 3.90 ERA guy or whatever the case.
In football, it is meaningless to compare BB’s Y/Rec to another WR who probably ran different types of routes and faced tougher defenders. Looking at air yards is a better indicator of what the WR was asked to do and what he actually did, and in BB’s case, it shows that he was not asked to go deep as often as a 20-something Y/Rec would hint at…at all.
I would take into consideration Berrian’s performance vs. the quality of defense and who was playing QB for the Vikings were I making a prediction. I would consider stats vs. the 0-16 Lions and other dissimilar teams to be completely irrelevant, as they were.
Means are also misleading when computing the league average passer rating (or other stat). It’s better to take the median of qualified starters (85.7 in 2008) rather than allow backups, starters who lost their jobs, and non-QBs on desperate and/or razzle dazzle plays to dilute the statistic (81.5 in 2008). If the difference seems small, it is magnified when comparing Gus’s 73.7 to either, but especially to the median (more than 10 points below, enough of a difference to make it meaningful to those who don’t like passer rating very much…but if one likes averages, then why not passer rating, too?).
Tarvaris Jackson has thrown 17 INT in 19 starts, so it would seem that he would throw an INT in almost every game based on an average. In reality, he has thrown at least 1 INT in 10 of his 19 starts while 9 are INT-free (and mostly against poor pass defenses).
I did look for those stats vs. ares of the field earlier, and I didn’t find them. Could you throw me a link if you’ve found it?
I wouldn’t care about throwing downfield more often if this current style of offense scored enough points. But relying on YAC or a miraculous run from AP every game is like trying to get lightning in a bottle. By the time it happens, it’s not enough, and it’s tough to replicate twice in a game. I can think of maybe 4 games in 3 years that have been won by accidental big plays, lucky us.
Not a fair analysis
If you’re going to cut his top 7 plays, you need to do it for ALL of the receivers in the league to get an accurate picture.
Norm Green still sucks!
Not unfair
I wasn’t trying to criticize BB’s play. I was illustrating that an average doesn’t always mean what it seems to mean (i.e. that the Vikings must throw downfield often in order for BB to have that average). The truth is that the Vikings do NOT throw downfield that often, so BB earned more of that average by breaking tackles than separating and running away from defenders.
No problem with criticizing
I have always felt that BB’s reputation as a burner is undeserved so I agree with what you are saying. I don’t recall many times last season where he had true separation from the defensive backfield unless there was a missed assignment. BB’s strengths are that he can… 1) Run a good route. 2)catch the ball and 3) make good decisions with it. That’s a nice package to have in a receiver. I don’t know his numbers from Chicago but I do recall that he had some craptastic quarterbacks throwing to him there and he did quite well in that situation (numbers wise). Again, he is in a place without a top flight signal caller and he put up some good numbers. Whether they were YAC or in the air doesn’t really matter to me as long as he can capitalize on the opportunities when they arise.
I’m not contending your point or your statistics KC, I just wanted to point out that when you want to look at the numbers while removing a segment (top 7 plays), it is not fair to compare those numbers against the rest of the league using a different statistical sample.
Maybe I’m splitting hairs here and that is not my intention. I think the key for the quarterback position is accuracy and decision making (If a QB has those 2 traits AND a cannon well then I would die a happy Vikings fan!). If you have a competent receiver who can capitalize on good throws in the right places, that is an excellent scenario. Maybe Sagerious Jacksonfels will morph into that quarterback. and if that happens I don’t think anyone is going to care whether the averages are skewed or not.
Norm Green still sucks!
So it doesn’t count as a 99-yard TD catch unless it travels 99 yards in the air? Deep threat aren’t just guys who get tackled as soon as they catch the ball down field. If a WR can average 20.1 yards/catch after only catching the ball 5 yards from the line of scrimmage, I want more receivers like that.
Averages are actually pretty good indicators. Sure a few guys broke big ones and some got less, but more often then not returners got something within a few yards of that average number. Look at any time Peterson has a few 1 or 2 yard gain. People get excited because based on his average, he is due to break a big run, probably to the house.
The coverage needs to get better. I am willing to give Kluwe a little benefit of the doubt because while he may have given a little more room than he should, the coverage should still be able to tackle the guy at some point if they are doing what they should be getting coached to do. Kluwe needs to improve on his punts when he has a lot of ground in front of him. He seems to do pretty well with a short field.
So it doesn’t count as a 99-yard TD catch unless it travels 99 yards in the air?
Sure it does. A 99-yd TD that travels 40 yds in the air means that the team is throwing downfield on that play, while a 5-yd comeback which gets broken for 94 more yds on the ground means that the receiver made the QB and coaches look much better than they had really hoped for on that play.
Averages are actually pretty good indicators.
Not really. It’s more accurate to look at 2-4 splits than 1 overall average. I’d rather see AP’s % of runs that went for negative, 0-1, 2-3 and 4+ yards than his overall average yards per carry. This was always discussed during Emmitt vs. Barry arguments however many years ago.
Also, your suggestion that a 1-2 yd gain for AP means that he’s due for a big one isn’t really true. From a statistical and probability viewpoint, the odds are the same before each event, just as 5 heads in a row does not necessitate a higher chance of getting tails on the next coin toss. Realistically, it could mean that the D has really keyed on AP and/or that the line is injured or struggling, if not overmatched, or that the offensive playcalling is horribly predictable (and it probably was if you were referring to an actual game), or that the coaches don’t trust the QB to take advantage of 8-10 in the box…which goes back to the %s by situation. The % of big plays vs. 8-10 in the box surely goes down for any RB, even if AP may have a higher average from a couple of miraculous runs that even he would have trouble replicating again. The smartest way to use statistical information is to look for data that tells you what can be reasonably expected most often and how consistently that outcome or set of outcomes can be replicated, and then to make one’s strategy or bets accordingly.
Sorry, but you are just wrong on that. Just because the ball travels 5 yards and he breaks or the ball hangs for two minutes in the air traveling the entire distance of the field, a 99 yard catch is a 99 yard catch and you are trying way to hard to make a unrealistic statistic seem important.
No one said just look at one average but even those splits are deciding an average over time and no matter how far down you break them it is still an average and not an indicator of what they will get everytime, but what you can expect everytime they touch the ball. Obviously just because he gets a few 1-2 yard gains doesn’t mean he is owed a large run because the numbers say its so, but because of how Peterson has performed over time, those watching can expect something good (like say a big run) over time because they know he averages 100 yards a game and unless he is going to have a bad game. Maybe he’ll have a big run or maybe several 8 or nine yarders that would also put him back on his average. No one knows what will happen, but because they know what he averages, they know they can expect some better play over the course of the game.
Of course their are meny
types of averages. there is mean, which is what you are refering to here, and is the most comone, then there is median, which is usefull for removing outliers. Mode and Range would for this discussion mean fairly little.
And I do feel that the Median Punting position should be considered. where was Kluwe punting from in comparison to Keonen. How did Kluwe fair vs other punters punting from the same field position? vs other punters who kicked the same number of punts as he did (Koenen kicked 10 fewer)? How meny of those teams were missing there two best Kick coverage Guys for the entire season?
it is not really fair to compare one player on one team to just one player form one other team and say, see, that guy is better, lets dump our guy so we can get better. if Koenen is the best kicker, so what. that doesn’t mean that Kluwe is the worst Punter because his stats are lesser then Koenen’s. For all we know about this comparison, Kluwe could be the 7th best punter. and since there are 32 teams that would make it very hard to dump him and get better. It would be more likely to get worse.
Will the Real Thor Please Stand Up ... ?
by the Real Thor on Apr 5, 2009 4:08 PM CDT up reply actions
Team Sport, Team Challenge
The net punt yardage needs to be maximized by the team as a whole. It’s not just a problem for Chris Kluwe, but as a prominent team member, he should be honing his craft with everyone else. Stats only tell pieces of the story. Greg Coleman can still punt balls out of bounds upon request, and hang time, not just the yards that the ball flies, is a key stat for punting. The coverage team needs to patrol their lanes properly. The odds of downing the ball near the goal line, can be improved with practice. Knowing the NFL rules and how to keep your feet where they belong is not occult art. These things can be learned. The ball needs to come down where the coaches intended when they drew up the coverage, not just wherever it will. Someone who kicks at least half the time indoors needs to achieve that, but mere talk about the gushing hole being in “your” end of the boat never has stopped a ship from going down. A chain breaks wherever its weakest link is. (The second weakest link will show on the following replays, once that weakest link is improved, unless the other weak items are bolstered as well.) There is an entire summer to fix all this stuff, and it’s good to see it being mentioned now, not after some unseemly shouting match.
+1
And yet, last year, Kluwe was a stand-out in screwing up. Repeatedly. So much so that Chilly had a conniption-fit and brought in 4 punters to compete for Kluwe’s job. I suspect that was more to give Kluwe a wake-up call than anything else because after that, Kluwe’s accuracy seemed to improve. The bottom line, however, is that in a 5 man punt competition, Kluwe still won… so what are you going to do? Advocate letting Booty punt the ball? Granted, Bob Lee did it, and Danny White, so maybe it would turn out to be something that Booty can do well :) . Seriously, whether or not Kluwe needs to be replaced, you have to consider the viable alternatives that are better…. and I don’t see a whole lot of them beating down the Vikings’ door.
That Was Chilli
Throwing Kluwe under teh bus so as to make himself look less like a fool.
Will the Real Thor Please Stand Up ... ?
by the Real Thor on Apr 6, 2009 8:02 AM CDT up reply actions
Yeah, because I’m sure Childress walked up to Kluwe on the sidelines and said “Ya know, we’re ahead by too much in this game, and Bush has already ran in a return for a TD on us once. Let’s make this interesting, and you kick it to him real deep to give him plenty of room to maneuver and set up blocks.”
For those with NFL Network
The MNF game vs the Saints is on in 30 minutes if you want to see how “special” the special teams were last year.
Punter
Our punter also needs to work on kicking it out of bounds. How many times have we seen the unit miss downing the ball short of the end-zone. If he kicks it our of bounds at about the 1-15 yard line then we dco not have that problem. Yes occasionally it will be judged in the endzone. A punter is only of the field for 8-15 plays. It seems to me to not be asking too much on any NFL punter to be able to boom-it-high, pooch it, punt it out of bounds.
Would like to watch that game
but don’t have NFL Net. As Thir said, the lane coverage was awful. I remember that. It was as if the ST was walking downfield. Sure Kluwe blew it by making it easy for Bush but more often than a runback, coverage on long punts forces a fair catch. There was more to it than just Kluwe not kicking the ball away. Seemed no one was close enough to Reggie for him to even worry about signaling a fair catch.
chris k
Don’t forget get tha are great offensive Leader by the name of Brad how can work on not letting my team score in the 2nd half of game wanted to change Chris style of punting. You can’t compare him to the FAlcons, they had a great year. Question is compare the stats after 2 years not just one. If were that worried about Chris punting maybe are offensive should be more productive in games. You didn’t show in your stats on many 3 and outs his offensive had compared to the Vikes. I like Chris and he should stay.
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