Patriots specialists snapshot

In one hand, I love Gostkowski because his kick-offs really put the defense in a good position at the start of the games. Hope the Pats sign him to a very long extension.
But on the other hand, I really don't like Hanson as a punter. Mike, of what you have seen this far, has Malone a real chance to make the team?

Has the long snapper position become a specialty position in the NFL in general? It seems to me that at one point Paxton was one of the few players who did nothing but snap. Now all long snappers appear to be specialists, is that the case???

We knew Gostkowski had the leg but didn't know he could be consistant. He's answered that question.
Mike: Punters can't just kick the ball far but need accuracy to down kicks inside the 20. Who do you think has the ability to do that?

Using NFL.com stats: Hanson may have ranked 22nd in net average, but he ranked #5 in total return yardage with 158 yards, and he was #1 for full season punters with only 11 returns. I was initially disappointed with some of his kicking too, but the more I watched the more I wondered how much of what he was doing was a 'called play' to protect a struggling coverage unit? Hanson's punting in Buffalo to close the season was impressive, I suspect Malone has his work cut out for him.

Gostkowski is a good kicker BUT what could be concerning is the guy who is coaching the Special Teams. He was with Denver for a few yrs and from what my friend (denver fan) says, the Broncos were rated the worst Special Teams in the NFL.....Now, maybe with the new wedge rules, all special teams will change dramatically..

Anybody that follows the draft year to year typically develops a few favorites while evaluating players. Gostkowski was one of mine in that draft, and I advocated picking him earlier than usual for a kicker on some other Patriots related venues after watching him dominate postseason activities coming out of college. I let out an audible yelp when the Pats snagged him in the fourth round. So, his emergence doesn't surprise me, but even I'm surprised and how easily he stepped in and filled Vinatieri's shoes, literally.

Of course, one of my other favorites in that draft was Chad Jackson...

Vinateri was great but by the time the Patriots traded him, many of his game winning FGs were made during games in which he missed FG attempts earlier in the game. This drove me nuts in his last year because he earned the reputation as "clutch" and everyone called him that but many of his clutch performances were making up for earlier misses. Don't get me wrong, he was still a good, maybe very good, kicker when he walked and went to Indy. He was not, however, the same Adam Vinatieri that won the Superbowl for us at the end of the 2001 season.

I think that in letter him go Bill Belicheck proved his skill at knowing when to sign and when to let a player go.

I find it hard to believe that almost half of all Patriots fans had complete faith in Stephen Gostowski's ability to make everyone forget about Adam Vinitieri RIGHT FROM THE START.

I also think that a stat like number of kicks returned and number of return yards can be skewered by the number of kicks Hanson shanked. Just because the returner couldn't return it, doesn't mean it was a good kick (there was one in particular where it netted 15 yards past the line of scrimmage and sailed 20 yards out of bounds for quite possibly the worst punt ever (I actually could have done better than that; it was that bad). The short story: Hanson doesn't positively affect the team's field position - he's also mediocre at best at coffin corner / inside-the-20-yard-line punts. I'd replace him if there's an option available, although I don't think the budget for a punter should be very big (try to replace him for cheap, or try to work with what he gives you).

I don't understand the necessity for a player who specifically longsnaps, unless there is that much added difficulty and stress to the job, or unless the chance of getting injured during punt coverage is high. I wonder if the roster spot could be utilized better on someone else. Then again, it's hard enough to find a longsnapper, let alone someone who can longsnap proficiently and play another position well enough to warrant keeping him for both over a longsnapping specialist who's very good at one thing...

Dedicated longsnapper is becoming more common, in part because of injuries. If your longsnapper plays two positions, what if he gets hurt? Where are you going to pick up a quality longsnapper mid-season? I see more plays botched in the kicking game for bad snaps than for any other reason. And these are plays that take points off the board or put your D in terrible field position. Granted, I've seen my share of good snaps bobbled as well, but I'm happy to see the Pats use a roster slot on a dedicated longsnapper.

Want an example of Long Snappers' importance? I remember the last season game where the Steelers lost to the Giants at Heinz Field. The Steelers lost their Long Snapper due to injury and rush specialist linebacker James Harrison came as the backup. The result? A ball snapped over Punter Berger's head for a safety that tied the game with 6 minutes left in the 4th quarter. That's why Belichick, who has always put much attention to this "third part" of the game, has a roster spot for a Long Snapper. What happens if the Patriots' long snapper gets hurt? Russ Hochstein would take that place?