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Dolphins struggling to find answer at kicker

datruth55

datruth55

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Caleb Sturgis didn’t have a good day Wednesday. He was 2-for-4 on field goal attempts, continuing a trend of inconsistency that’s followed him since, well, the Dolphins drafted him in the fifth round in 2013..

This a major problem for the Dolphins.

“Let’s be honest,” special teams coach Darren Rizzi said, “that’s a tangible position. You have to put the ball between the pipes, and that’s what he got to do.”

Sturgis, whose 78.4 percent success rate on field goals ranked 28th in the NFL last season, is struggling so far in training camp. He was 8-for-11 on field goals during another training camp kicking session. And he ranked 29th in the NFL as a rookie converting just 76.5 percent of his field goal attempts.

The other part of the problem is the Dolphins’ backup plan is kicker Andrew Franks, an undrafted rookie from tiny Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) in Troy, N.Y., isn’t showing much more promise.

Franks was 5-for-7 Tuesday.

“Andrew Franks has a NFL leg,” Rizzi said, “and I think everybody’s probably seen that that’s watched him kick. The thing about Andrew, going to a Division III school, he kind of coached himself for four years…He did kickoff, he did field goal, he did punts, so he never got great at one of them. He got good at all of them.

“Now we’re just trying to limit him obviously to field goals and kickoffs, completely taking the punt out of it. He’s got a big leg, as long as his consistency stays.”

No kicker is consistent, though.

On Wednesday, Sturgis, who sustained a leg injury in a team-sanctioned kickball game during the offseason, hit from 46 yards twice but missed from 44 yards and 52 yards.

Rizzi said the two things Sturgis has to do are stay healthy and be more consistent. Rizzi said Franks has to also show he can be consistent. Neither is a favorable review. The job is up for grabs.

"Anybody that's in camp has a chance to win the job," Rizzi said.

In a league where games are often decided by fewer than six points, the field goals become big.

And the kicker position becomes more problematic for the Dolphins.
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http://www.sun-sentinel.com/sports/...-to-find-answer-at-kicker-20150805-story.html
 
Struggling? I don't think they're really even trying [to find an answer], which to me is far more of a travesty than what's going on with the OG position.

Maybe we don't plan on kicking FGs...just go for it on 4th down every time.
 
f***ing ****...it baffles me how coaching can't just go out and get a veteran!! Anyone! At this point anyone is better then Stergis. FO really dropped the ball on this kicking situation big time! Dan Carpenter, Im sorry!
 
xSxPxHx said:
f***ing ****...it baffles me how coaching can't just go out and get a veteran!! Anyone! At this point anyone is better then Stergis. FO really dropped the ball on this kicking situation big time! Dan Carpenter, Im sorry!
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Who?
 
El Calebra said:
Who?
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True, the list of available veterans is underwhelming and there aren't any clear upgrades to Sturgis right now. Best course of action is watch preseason and see who gets cut from other teams.
 
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Sturgis is consistently inconsistent. I have no faith in him to improve, which is something I don't say about ANYONE. The only positive I can say is he is showing this NOW instead of waiting until the season already starts.

Franks is intriguing. I think tomorrow is his day to go. He has a solid chance to make up some ground in this competition.
 
I don't think it's a problem with Sturgis or Franks, it's much more a coaching problem. If you try kicker after kicker after kicker and you don't find one while the ones you let go perform with other teams, maybe you need to replace the coaches.
 
I would not rule out the snapper & holder here, and as has been stated, the coaching.

Sturgis was COLD BANK $$$ at Florida. As close to automatic as it gets. Just saying.
 
Caleb's record at Florida was 70 out of 88 which is 79.5%. Not exactly automatic.
 
Dolphins7273 said:
We DRAFTED a kicker... Thanks, Jeff.
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I don't get this thought. We are concerned about a kicker about as much as any other spot on the roster. Games come down to a miss or a make quite often. Playoff games and Super Bowls are gained or decided often by a kicker. 5th-7th rounders are low odds as position players go. So why not draft a kicker here and there. Especially if you find the right one. Obviously Sturgis should be FA surfing right now but damn lots of kickers in this league that we could have a piece of for a 7th.
 
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