ChicagoRedskinsFan Posted December 1, 2009 Share Posted December 1, 2009 During the Eagles game, it was mentioned that David Akers was briefly a Redskin in 1998. He was cut and signed with the Eagles. Since then he has made every field goal he has ever attempted against the Redskins (at least it seems) and been responsible for the winning margin in many Redskins-Eagles games including the most recent. He's like Mariano Rivera - you better not let it come down to that. Meanwhile the Redskins have had countless inconsistent kickers over the years. Just cost us the Dallas game 9 days ago. This part of the game seems like an afterthought, yet how many of our 8-8 seasons could have been playoff seasons if an accurate place kicker had been the difference in a couple of games? I'm not saying the Redskins should have known that he would be one of the games best kickers, but it's a subtle example (there are more obvious) that distinguishes a well-run organization like the Eagles from, well, the Redskins. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Koolblue13 Posted December 1, 2009 Share Posted December 1, 2009 I hope Dixon doesn't have the same success for them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dan T. Posted December 1, 2009 Share Posted December 1, 2009 I remember the game Akers played for the Skins. He missed a 50+ yarder and one other as I recall, but you could clearly tell that he had a powerful leg. Unfortunately, the Redskins were in the middle of a kicker-of-the-week parade, and any guy who didn't immediately excel wasn't going to last. Too bad, because if Akers hits those two field goals, our years long search for a decent kicker after Chip Lohmiller would have ended. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stwasm Posted December 1, 2009 Share Posted December 1, 2009 In fairness, when Akers was here, he wasn't that reliable. So, they had to cut him. For whatever reason, he became the second coming of Mark Moseley after he left. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Riggo#44 Posted December 1, 2009 Share Posted December 1, 2009 In fairness, when Akers was here, he wasn't that reliable. So, they had to cut him. For whatever reason, he became the second coming of Mark Moseley after he left. He kicked in one game, missed two FGs, both in the 40-49 yrd range... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sussudio Posted December 1, 2009 Share Posted December 1, 2009 Akers only game was in the Kingdome vs Seattle and he sucked. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Monrovia_Redskin Posted December 1, 2009 Share Posted December 1, 2009 I was just shaking my head during the game when they mentioned that Akers used to be a skins...yikes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TMK9973 Posted December 1, 2009 Share Posted December 1, 2009 Please. There are a lot of good to great players the Redskins have let go that they should have known were going to be good. Akers was not one of them. He played one game after our starting kicker went down. The 4th game of the season in a 0-7 start. He missed 2 FG's by a wide margin and had short kickoffs. He was just a random guy we grabed. The following week we signed Cary Blanchard, who did pretty good for us but had short kick offs. The following year we signed Brent Conway who had a GREAT year in 1999. sure -We mised lighting in a bottle with David Akers - But there is no way in hell anyone could have known that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
techboy Posted December 1, 2009 Share Posted December 1, 2009 For whatever reason, he became the second coming of Mark Moseley after he left. It's not totally uncommon. Moseley himself is an example, since he bounced around a few teams before coming here. For whatever reason, sometimes it takes a few tries to stick. That the Redskins cut Akers has been bothering me forever. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Larry Brown #43 Posted December 1, 2009 Share Posted December 1, 2009 He kicked in one game, missed two FGs, both in the 40-49 yrd range... He was one of several kickers we brought in that year on a one-game trial basis. Norv just kept cutting guys week after week as they continued to fail. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dan T. Posted December 1, 2009 Share Posted December 1, 2009 In fairness, when Akers was here, he wasn't that reliable. So, they had to cut him. For whatever reason, he became the second coming of Mark Moseley after he left. I almost certain he played exactly 1 game here, and was gone. He missed two field goals, one of them over 50 yards, and he was gone. One game. He was one of a long line of short term kickers who were marched through here in a search for the permanent guy during that time. No revisionist history - I saw something in him that I thought they should have kept him. But they were in the kicker-of-the-week mode. If you didn't produce.... NEXT! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Galvatron Posted December 1, 2009 Share Posted December 1, 2009 I really wish we would have drafted or traded for Janikowski. With our offense in as bad shape as it has been for the past 4-5 years he could have kept is in games by kicking 60 yarders. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Larry Brown #43 Posted December 1, 2009 Share Posted December 1, 2009 It's not totally uncommon. Moseley himself is an example, since he bounced around a few teams before coming here.For whatever reason, sometimes it takes a few tries to stick. Yep, I believe Moseley was property of the Eagles and Houston Oilers briefly before latching on with the Skins. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GhostofSparta Posted December 1, 2009 Share Posted December 1, 2009 Was that the same season that the team brought back the 40-something Eddie Murray out of retirement for like, 2 games, or was that a different season? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SoCalSkins Posted December 1, 2009 Share Posted December 1, 2009 Keenan McCardell and Nate Newton were two others that got away. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Larry Brown #43 Posted December 1, 2009 Share Posted December 1, 2009 Was that the same season that the team brought back the 40-something Eddie Murray out of retirement for like, 2 games, or was that a different season? No, Murray was here in '95 and 2000. All of these guys kicked for us in '98, and I may even be missing someone... David Akers Cary Blanchard Scott Blanton Brett Conway Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
techboy Posted December 1, 2009 Share Posted December 1, 2009 Yep, I believe Moseley was property of the Eagles and Houston Oilers briefly before latching on with the Skins. Moseley was with the Eagles for his first year in the NFL. Maybe Akers is a little payback. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dan T. Posted December 1, 2009 Share Posted December 1, 2009 Keenan McCardell and Nate Newton were two others that got away. Nate Newton? Are you sure about that? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SoCalSkins Posted December 1, 2009 Share Posted December 1, 2009 Nate Newton? Are you sure about that? He was an undrafted free agent. A Bobby Beathard pickup. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
elkabong82 Posted December 1, 2009 Share Posted December 1, 2009 I guess, but digging back over a decade and using a kicker as an example? And the '98 squad was under different ownership and FO structure. I believe we actually had a GM in '98 too. Here is his stat line: http://www.nfl.com/players/davidakers/profile?id=AKE551610 Played 1 season with us, missed his sole 2 FG attempts, he only played in 1 game. So he was a young kicker we brought in, didn't do well, and he left. Also, I'm not seeing how Akers is such a great example. His FG percentage for career is 81.7%, Suisham is 79.6%: http://www.nfl.com/players/shaunsuisham/careerstats?id=SUI593274 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Parker Posted December 1, 2009 Share Posted December 1, 2009 How many times has Akers won a superbowl with the Eagles? Thanks come again. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dan T. Posted December 1, 2009 Share Posted December 1, 2009 I'm in no way blaming the front office for letting Akers go. It's just one of those what ifs. He (Nate Newton) was an undrafted free agent. A Bobby Beathard pickup. Wow. I didn't know that.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChicagoRedskinsFan Posted December 1, 2009 Author Share Posted December 1, 2009 Please.There are a lot of good to great players the Redskins have let go that they should have known were going to be good. Akers was not one of them. He played one game after our starting kicker went down. The 4th game of the season in a 0-7 start. He missed 2 FG's by a wide margin and had short kickoffs. He was just a random guy we grabed. The following week we signed Cary Blanchard, who did pretty good for us but had short kick offs. The following year we signed Brent Conway who had a GREAT year in 1999. sure -We mised lighting in a bottle with David Akers - But there is no way in hell anyone could have known that. ...and Brett Conway went on to be the franchise kicker for the Redskins?? Not exactly. I barely remember him. The point is that if you have the people in place to evaluate talent properly, eventually you will find the right guy. It doesn't have to be Akers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SirClintonPortis Posted December 1, 2009 Share Posted December 1, 2009 Well, if it was the Super Bowl, the scored was tied with less than a minute to go and Suisham had to kick a 41-yarder, I wouldn't count on him to make it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeff in D.C. Posted December 1, 2009 Share Posted December 1, 2009 Mistakes are made all the time, I don't blame Norv & Charley I mean hey, the guy missed kicks when he got the chance, so it's one of those "who knew?" type deals. If you're going to slam Charley & Norv for dropping the ball on Akers, you have to slam Vinny for not finding a good kicker in 10 years here (we'll see how Suisham continues to do). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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