Assessing Gostkowski's Struggles, Belichick Compares Kickers To Golfers
By Matt Dolloff, CBS Boston
BOSTON (CBS) -- Bill Belichick went into great detail to assess the struggles of Patriots kicker Stephen Gostkowski in his Monday conference call. He compared the kicking game to golf, and it made a whole lot of sense.
Just like a kicker preparing to put cleat to football, there are a lot of different details to take into account when taking a golf shot. The weather and wind conditions often play a big role. There are several different kinds of shots you need to make with different kinds of clubs. A kicker may have to boot the ball through the end zone, then kick a 45-yard field goal, then make a squib kick to the 5-yard line, within three possessions. This golf-like variance makes the kicking game more complicated than it looks.
But the most fitting way kicking compares to golf is that it's mostly a mental game.
Kickers could have mechanical issues or play with an injury, but ultimately, their job is fairly consistent from week-to-week. It's more important than it is in other positions to remain focused and mentally tough.
Time and time again, kickers across the NFL have shown that it's hard to battle back from costly mistakes. Gostkowski's missed extra point in the 2015 AFC Championship Game has carried over into 2016 as he has missed two extra points and three field goal attempts in seven games, inviting speculation that he is inside his own head.
But mental comparisons aside, golf certainly has its technical similarities to kicking, as Belichick explained when asked if Gostkowski's change in his kickoff techniques have affected his field goal kicking in 2016. ...
"It would be like a golfer. You've got to be able to hit a sand wedge, you've got to be able to hit a five iron, you've got to be able to drive, you've got to be able to putt. That's what kickers and punters do. There's plus-50 punts, there's field goals, there's kickoffs, there's back-up punts, there's punts against a heavy rush, there's punts against a six-man box where both of the gunners are getting double teamed. And just like golf, there are wind conditions and not wind conditions and so forth. It's not like they're standing out there on the driving range and banging the ball away every time. ... Whether it's a punter or kicker you're talking about, they have to master different skills, different kicks, different types of kicks, different things that are specific to their position just like every other player and every other athlete, for the most part, has to do."
In short, Belichick is saying that a kicker's job is more complex than you think and Gostkowski's job, like a golfer's, depends on things like the weather and field conditions in ways that other positions do not. Anyone who's gone golfing knows the feeling: on the flat surface of a driving range you're ripping the ball hundreds of yards, but get onto a real course with all its hills and bumps and hazards and suddenly you're shanking the ball everywhere.
That is, unless you can remain focused, regardless of your surroundings. Mental toughness is what separates good pro golfers from great ones; for the most part, everyone is physically capable of making all the shots they need to make, but not everyone has the mental fortitude to do it consistently and under pressure.
Gostkowski has to be putting too much pressure on himself right now. Maybe he's over-thinking things. But it's a good sign that he came right out and said he 'stinks' right now. He's not in denial and he's aware of the need to get better, but he's also not down on his luck or appearing to be mentally defeated. Belichick has already said the Patriots are going to "work through" Gostkowski's issues and won't be doing anything drastic, as much as you may want them to bring in another kicker from the outside or reconsider Gostkowski's future in New England.
Maybe Gostkowski really does have some kind of mechanical issue or physical problem with his kicking right now. He has had to make adjustments to his kickoffs and, like a pro golfer, always has a lot of different techniques to stay sharp with every time he lines up to boot the ball. But also like a pro golfer, the longer Gostkowski goes missing field goals he should make virtually 100 percent of the time, the more you have to believe the real problem is upstairs.
Matt Dolloff is a writer for CBSBostonSports.com. Any opinions expressed do not necessarily reflect that of CBS or 98.5 The Sports Hub. Have a news tip or comment for Matt? Follow him on Twitter @mattdolloff and email him at mdolloff@985thesportshub.com.
