Question about NFL...

[Nick 1733]

Example A - 2003 Tennessee Titans placekicker Joe Nedney goes down because of injury and is out for the year. Punter Craig Hentrich steps in for Nedney in game one of the season against Oakland and goes 4 for 4 on FG's of 33, 34, 48 and 49 yards along with 1 for 1 on PAT attempts.

Of course, Hentrich did handle the place kicking duties at Notre Dame, so he might not be the best example to use in the instance of an "emergency" kicker. He also has handled kick-off duties in the NFL, so more points in favor of him as the back up.

OT - Hey Nick - what's with the Badger love (not that I have a problem with that )?

First off, I know Hentrich handles KO duties and so many punters do nowadays. Like Knorr with Denver.

And with the Badgers, I've always been a Badger fan, since my ex is from WIS and her and I had planned on going to Wisconsin (this was when we were in 9th grade), but yea, that's a whole different story.

[Alphabet Man]

so i would hold the ball pointed towards where i want to kick it to on an angle right? and not long ways?

is it possible to be both kicker and punter?

after they punt or kick do they just get off the feild as soon as they can? or can they stay and lay a few tackles?

[Nick 1733]

so i would hold the ball pointed towards where i want to kick it to on an angle right? and not long ways?

is it possible to be both kicker and punter?

after they punt or kick do they just get off the feild as soon as they can? or can they stay and lay a few tackles?

They stay on the field until the play is over. Bennett was the best tackling punter of our time.

In the NFL, they don't have one who is both a placekicker and a punter.

You could be a punter and a kick off specialist.

For a punt, you want to hold the ball straight out and parallel with the ground, hold the ball pointing forward, then drop it as if you were setting it on a table and proceed to kick it.

For kicking off, you place the ball on a tee and angle it however you like and just run up and kick it.

For kicking field goals, someone holds the ball upright on the ground and you approach it the same as if it were a kick off and try to put it between the FG uprights.

[Alphabet Man]

got it

[slapshot]

A punter would have to be more athletically agile, in my opinion. They are their own ball handler. Once they take the snap form the center, it's up to them to either punt the ball, or run/pass it, if the snap is botched or there is no time to kick it. I think this is where Bennett's experience in the AFL helps out...he was used to being a ball carrier and a punter.

A kicker is more reliant on other people/objects...a kicking tee (for kickoffs) or the kick holder (for field goals). If a field goal try is botched, usually the holder is reponsible for making a new play out of it, usually a pass. This is why most holders are quarterbacks.

Punt strategy has pretty much been covered. It's not necessarily the distance of the punt, but more the trajectory. A high punt gives the kicking team more time to get its defenders down field, but a longer, lower punt gets more distance.

[pcgd]

A punter would have to be more athletically agile, in my opinion. They are their own ball handler. Once they take the snap form the center, it's up to them to either punt the ball, or run/pass it, if the snap is botched or there is no time to kick it. I think this is where Bennett's experience in the AFL helps out...he was used to being a ball carrier and a punter.

A kicker is more reliant on other people/objects...a kicking tee (for kickoffs) or the kick holder (for field goals). If a field goal try is botched, usually the holder is reponsible for making a new play out of it, usually a pass. This is why most holders are quarterbacks.

Punt strategy has pretty much been covered. It's not necessarily the distance of the punt, but more the trajectory. A high punt gives the kicking team more time to get its defenders down field, but a longer, lower punt gets more distance.

actually aren't the back up kickers holding field goals these days? At least in the NFL?

I know my friend who was a back up punter was the holder for Illinois a few times.

[Discrim]

i know the Rams have a receiver (Dane Looker, iirc) holding for field goals, but mainly it's punters holding in teh NFL nowadays. heck, twas the 60s when the holders were none other than the starting QBs like Johnny U and Bart Starr.

and on guys who do both, it's a lot more common in the college game (Hentrich when he was at ND, current ND P/K DJ Fitzpatrick, BYU's Matt Payne).

regarding punters or kickers who pack a good punch, obviously Bennett aint afraid to lay the smack down, Todd Sauerbrun from the Panthers is another good example (heck, he's stronger than most receivers and DBs). college's best hitting kicker is Matt Payne from BYU...if you didn't see him against Boise State, you should have. Boise returning a punt, dude gotta beat the punter...BOOM! Payne's still standin, returnman's down.

used to be punters and kickers were backups at other positions, most often the emergency QB, wideout or safety, so there was the danger of a fake kick or something. now, you got Tom Tupa who barely qualifies as having an arm, and not much else.

[Alphabet Man]

watching Steelers-Eagles right now (half time about now)... what is the FLAG mean? and the yellow line.... some Steelers guy got penalised for acting like a bird after a touchdown and then gave the ball to some guy in the crowd....why? if i scored a touchdown in the NFL, i'd keep the ball and just show off my chainsaw or sling shot

[rockchalk]

watching Steelers-Eagles right now (half time about now)... what is the FLAG mean? and the yellow line.... some Steelers guy got penalised for acting like a bird after a touchdown and then gave the ball to some guy in the crowd....why? if i scored a touchdown in the NFL, i'd keep the ball and just show off my chainsaw or sling shot

The flag tells you that there has been a penalty flag thrown on the play. The yellow line shows where the line to gain a first down is. It is one of the greatest technological breakthroughs in TV sports history, and it is something that is now taken for granted by most people. Ask anyone in the States who has seen a game on ESPN Classic how stupid they feel when they ask themselves where the "First and Ten" line is, then remember that it didn't exist 5 years ago.

Anyway, did Ward get penalized for his T.O. Eagle dance? That seems odd, but it is in the rulebook that any form of taunting is to be penalized, except that which is "spontaneous in nature". It is a rule that has good intentions, but is nearly impossible to enforce and when it is, there are always complaints (rightly so) of other teams or players doing much worse and not being penalized for them.

POST 200! YAY!

[Nick 1733]

watching Steelers-Eagles right now (half time about now)... what is the FLAG mean? and the yellow line.... some Steelers guy got penalised for acting like a bird after a touchdown and then gave the ball to some guy in the crowd....why? if i scored a touchdown in the NFL, i'd keep the ball and just show off my chainsaw or sling shot

The flag tells you that there has been a penalty flag thrown on the play. The yellow line shows where the line to gain a first down is. It is one of the greatest technological breakthroughs in TV sports history, and it is something that is now taken for granted by most people. Ask anyone in the States who has seen a game on ESPN Classic how stupid they feel when they ask themselves where the "First and Ten" line is, then remember that it didn't exist 5 years ago.

Anyway, did Ward get penalized for his T.O. Eagle dance? That seems odd, but it is in the rulebook that any form of taunting is to be penalized, except that which is "spontaneous in nature". It is a rule that has good intentions, but is nearly impossible to enforce and when it is, there are always complaints (rightly so) of other teams or players doing much worse and not being penalized for them.

POST 200! YAY!

Actually the penalty was for excessive celebration because there three of his teammates were celebrating with him.

He wasn't penalized the second time for doing it because he was the only one celebrating.

[Alphabet Man]

i couldn't be bothered watching the rest.... went and played Rugby 2004 on PS2 (yes, we have them in Oz)

i liek the ives and jumps to get over the end line (endzone i think it is called or is it touch line- nmo thats rugby- err i'm confused)

[Nick 1733]

i couldn't be bothered watching the rest.... went and played Rugby 2004 on PS2 (yes, we have them in Oz)

i liek the ives and jumps to get over the end line (endzone i think it is called or is it touch line- nmo thats rugby- err i'm confused)

endzone is the correct term. the white line is called the goal line.

[Alphabet Man]

need help with this q

in what year did the NFL and AFL merge to become the NFL?

also, when did the name American Football League or American Football Conference cease to exist? i kow the AFC still exists

[Nick 1733]

The merger happened after the 1969 season for the start of the 1970 season. That is the same year which the "American Football League" name ceased to exist.

There is an AFL here now which is the Arena Football League.

[JamesCraven]

The actual year of merger was in 1966, that was when the first Super Bowl was played as part of the merger argeement.

[Nick 1733]

The actual year of merger was in 1966, that was when the first Super Bowl was played as part of the merger argeement.

Umm, actually the NFL and AFL became one after the 1969 season, that's when the merger HAPPENED. It was still the AFL up until 1970.

[Alphabet Man]

why on NFL.com does it say under history and 1960-1970 that it merged in the GREAT year of 1966?

also, i saw a replay of Darren Bennet's Vikings and Detroit Lions.... on the FOX sports covereage at the top of screen it says like 2 & 13, i know the 2 means the down 2 but what does the number after the & mean?

[slapshot]

if it's an "&" sign, it probably means "2nd down, 13 yards to go" for the first down. Unless it was a dash between them (2-13), in that case it's shown for statistical reasons, then it could mean 2 completions out of 13 passes thrown, or 2 rushes/catches for 13 yards.

[Alphabet Man]

thanks