Hero #2...Billy Cundiff

I gotta say, for the first time in a long, long, long time, when we lined up for a FG, I was uncomfortably comfortable. After this guys first kick squeezed in the uprights, every other attempt split the middle. I actually made a sandwich :hungry:or went for a beer when we lined up. It seemed to be a foregone conclusion that 3 points were going to be put on the board! 4-4 on the road! Wow, it was unbelievable, hopefully this trend continues because it is nice to know we can come away with 3 if we are down in the redzone.

Am I alone feeling this way? It just seemed the sequence went as follows..here's the snap, the hold, the kick...It's good! :point2sky:point2sky

Instead of..the snap..uh wait, the hold...uh no, the kic..It's blocked!! or the kick...no good! Wide left or wide right!

Big time effort, completely agree. Hail

It feels good to have a real NFL kicker for once. Will he miss some kicks this year? Yes. All kickers do. But this guy is MONEY inside 50 yards.

Its only one game, but he certainly seems solid.

I'm still amazed that he's here. We've grinded over kickers for years and years, unable to find a suitable one. And then in one week this guy falls out of the sky and grabs the job.

I gotta say, for the first time in a long, long, long time, when we lined up for a FG, I was uncomfortably comfortable.

Agreed, I am about as big of a Gano fan as there is, but I felt so much more at ease with Cundiff kicking yesterday.

I'm holding back until Week Three and beyond on Cundiff.

All things being equal, in a climate controlled dome like NO and St Louis this coming Sunday, he shouldn't miss anything. So I want to see him out in the elements on a grass field when other factors come into play. (Apparently he was HORRID all week in practice outdoors last week for example.).

That said, can't fault his first outing. And yes, it'd be/ maybe is already SO nice to NOT be hiding behind your hands every time whichever kicker takes to the field.

Hail.

I don't think I'll ever be comfortable with a Redskins kicker, but you're right to point out that Cundiff was a major key to our victory on Sunday. His twelve points (sixteen if you count XPs) exceeded the margin of victory, and being able to finish nearly all of our drives with points I'm sure was a huge factor in boosting the confidence of the offense.

I wasn't initially happy with the release of Gano, but I think it makes more sense to get a guy like Cundiff, who is far more consistent from 45 yards or less, than to keep Gano, who can hit from 50+, but missed from less than that distance quite often. It looks to me like we've finally got a QB who can move the team down the field, so FG range becomes less important than FG accuracy.

How about his kickoffs as well! I know it's boring to talk about the kicking game, but come on, he eliminated one of the Saints most prolific weapons in Darren Sproles with his return game by kicking the ball thru the end zone or the very back of it!

I've gotta say that I wanted to keep Gano. I guess it all goes back to our David Akers moment:(. Thank you Norv. That being said, Cundiff was money, and his kickoffs were amazing. It shows that they have decided to change the way they view kickoffs and settle for touchbacks instead of trying to pin the team inside the 20 yard line. Gano could have done this also, but Cundiff obviously did a very goo job. Inside the 50 he is money.

Its only one game, but he certainly seems solid.

I'm still amazed that he's here. We've grinded over kickers for years and years, unable to find a suitable one. And then in one week this guy falls out of the sky and grabs the job.

I admit, I was skeptical. But he definitely gets a "HAIL"!

I was more impressed by his kickoffs. They were frustrating Sproles to no end, and it may have impacted the offense's rhythm.

Yes. I brought this up in another thread. I think Gano misses at least one, if not two of those FGs. That would've made them game a whole lot more interesting. I'm glad Billy showed well for us this first week.

How about his kickoffs as well! I know it's boring to talk about the kicking game, but come on, he eliminated one of the Saints most prolific weapons in Darren Sproles with his return game by kicking the ball thru the end zone or the very back of it!

I was more impressed by his kickoffs. They were frustrating Sproles to no end, and it may have impacted the offense's rhythm.

Great points. When the opposing team's offense is starting from the 20 nearly every single time it's got to be helpful for the defense - just from a consistency standpoint at the very least. And I totally agree that, without an exciting return to set things up, the offense basically has to start from first gear on every single drive.

Cundiff was surprisingly solid in all aspects of his game. The question is can he be consistent all season long? The last thing we need is a kicking carrousel, ala the 2000 season.

Have to agree with the other posters here. It definatly felt good to almost count on those 3 points instead of the Oh (explective of your choice here) there goes another missed oppertunity. I remember last year thinking at times that we should just forget the kicking game altogether and go Madden on them and go for it on every 4th down no matter what.

He looked the part. Hopefully he can keep it up. Big reason why we won yesterday.

His 12 points made the difference. The first one scared the crap out of me, but the others elevated and dead center. His kickoffs were also a thing of beauty...deep, no return.

Yes. I brought this up in another thread. I think Gano misses at least one, if not two of those FGs. That would've made them game a whole lot more interesting. I'm glad Billy showed well for us this first week.

Reading this made me laugh. During the closing minutes of the game yesterday I remarked that we'd be preparing for disappointment had Gano stayed, because we'd likely only have been up by two due to his missing a couple of those field goals.

Good job, Billy. And good job FO for having the guts to sign him.

Gano could have made those kicks too.

How about his kickoffs as well! I know it's boring to talk about the kicking game, but come on, he eliminated one of the Saints most prolific weapons in Darren Sproles with his return game by kicking the ball thru the end zone or the very back of it!

I wouldn't say that. He did put 6 out for touchbacks.

But the 3 they brought out .. they had a 35 yard average, including a 48 yard return in the 4th quarter when we could least afford it.

Of course, it's not Cundiff's fault for the long returns. He had a fine day all around. Good solid field goals, and 6 out of 9 is a healthy average for touchbacks. Considering we kicked off NINE times, i'll take it every week.

Cundiff gets an A+

Guessing what Gano may have done is pointless.

~Bang

Gano could have made those kicks too.

I'm waiting for the sarcasm here......

I, for one, am baffled by the hatorade for Cundiff. His miss in the playoffs was as much (if not more) on John Harbaugh clock management as it was Cundiff's execution. He went out there yesterday and nailed 4 FG's and 4 XP's. Not to mention kicking the ball through the endzone, fustrating Sproles to the point that he returned one from 9 1/2 yards deep (and still couldn't make the 20). Could Gano do that? maybe, but he is no longer on the team and I think we would have been on pins and needles everytime he stepped on the field. So far so good. And if Cundiff screws up, I'm realitively sure Gano will be available.

I was mad when we cut Gano, but after seeing Cundiff yesterday, I now understand. Kickoffs, and FG were money. Shoot, he even made a nice tackle on one of the returns. :applause:

I wouldn't say that. He did put 6 out for touchbacks.

But the 3 they brought out .. they had a 35 yard average, including a 48 yard return in the 4th quarter when we could least afford it.

Of course, it's not Cundiff's fault for the long returns. He had a fine day all around. Good solid field goals, and 6 out of 9 is a healthy average for touchbacks. Considering we kicked off NINE times, i'll take it every week.

Cundiff gets an A+

Guessing what Gano may have done is pointless.

~Bang

Sproles is an electifying guy. He scared me all game long. He's a tough matchup. Luckily we don't face players like him every week. I really have no idea who returns kicks or punts (Amendola) for the Rams.

---------- Post added September-10th-2012 at 11:03 AM ----------

His 12 points made the difference. The first one scared the crap out of me, but the others elevated and dead center. His kickoffs were also a thing of beauty...deep, no return.

I thought (and still do think) he missed the first one. I wish the camera angle was better. I'm guessing the refs said it went over the post, but I thought he missed it.

gano NEVER missed a kick all year the 100% pro kicker for automatic 3's from 60 yards or less so you do not lose field position.Never got nervous last year. Ha! Ha!