Justin Tucker got this chance for the Ravens last night. Because he’s good, the Ravens have trusted him in many big spots, and he flat out WHOMPS the football with that leg-cannon of his.
Josh Scobee was told to go sit his ass down, because he had missed two already last night, and nobody on a football team really likes a kicker even when they are good, and they hate his fucking guts when he’s missing.
I’m sure it felt kinda good in the moment if you were Mike Tomlin and the Steelers. But it was probably a bad tactical choice. A 51-yarder to that end of Heinz Field is no gimme, but Scobee’s previous two strikes were solid, they just drifted more in the wind than he thought, and missed the mark by a few feet.
In other words, it’s not like he was incapable of kicking the ball that far, something that sealed Norv Turner’s fate as Redskins coach. (Finally!) Andy Pollin remembers the moment….
December 3, 2000, FedEx Field – Giants 9 – Redskins 7 – This one came down to a field goal attempt in the final minute of the game, which was the last defiant act of coach Norv Turner. Setting up for a 49-yarder, holder Tommy Barnhardt called timeout to tell Turner that the Redskins 44 year old kicker, Eddie Murray, couldn’t kick it 49 yards. Turner said, “Kick it anyway.” Murray kicked it and it came up short.
The time to fire you kicker is the next day. The time to use your kicker to win the game, is when the game is sitting there to be won. I mean, it’s not like Michael Vick was marching the Steelers up and down the field. The likelihood of scoring a TD and not a FG to win was minimal.
In short, you were gonna have to trust Scobee one more time, most likely.
Or, you can trust Michael Vick to throw a bunny soft 2-yard out to wide open Antonio Brown to keep the chains moving on 4th and 1. Oops. Never mind.
So Scobee is likely gone, and I am not here to say he shouldn’t be sent packing. But just like Glenn Frey didn’t kick Don Felder’s ass right then and there on that stage when the Eagles broke up, the Steelers shouldn’t have effectively fired their kicker in overtime last night. They could have used him.
The “Lonesome Kicker” song from Adam Sandler looks especially prescient now, since Andre Kristacovitchlalinski, Jr. did indeed play for the Steelers.
And yes… “they’re going for two..”
So you’re saying that if Tomlin goes to the well a third time and the kicker misses there won’t be a Cat 5 s-storm on how insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result? That’s what you’re saying? Are you sure you don’t want to reconsider that?
They took my snow shoe!
My wife’s out with her quote-unquote “friend”…….