Patriots kicker Stephen Gostkowski doesn’t think we’re in the midst of a kicking crisis. If anything, he thinks we may be a little spoiled.
Gostkowski said that despite this weekend’s rash of misses, which led to a number of changes at the position, he doesn’t think the craft of kicking is suffering.
“I honestly don’t think of it that way,” he said, via Mike Reiss of ESPN.com. “That’s just me personally. Obviously kicking is very mental and if you do struggle it is a little harder to go out there with confidence, but the good ones, if they miss they can bounce right back and make the next one. There are a lot of reasons why guys can miss — it isn’t always just black and white — but you just have to learn to move on from it. That’s just the approach I take. I’ve missed plenty of kicks before.
“I think the kickers have been so good the past couple years that it just looks different. There are still plenty of guys doing well, it’s just easier to point out the guys that miss.”
He specifically mentioned kickers such as Justin Tucker and Adam Vinatieri making crucial kicks late in games, and as he’s one of the better ones in the game, it’s reasonable to accept that he’s found a valid mental approach to his job.
He’s made 80-of-85 field goals since the start of 2013 season, and set the league record for consecutive points after with 425 earlier this season.
“I don’t over-think it any more,” he said. “I’ve been doing it too long to worry about what other people are doing. . . . I don’t concern myself with other guys, and try to compare or contrast or anything like that. I don’t root for guys to miss or anything like that. If I watch football, I just watch as a fan.”
And from his view, it’s not bad enough to panic about.