REBUILD: WHERE TO START (FINALE: SPECIAL TEAMS)
THIS IS IT! The last section of what a team should consider during its rebuild. We continue to look into what positions should be focused on; the why's and why not's. I will do my best to stay neutral and focus on the Bears' history.
FINAL PART 8!SPECIAL TEAMS
I know I said I'd stay neutral, BUT:DEVIN HESTER SHOULD HAVE BEEN A FIRST BALLOT HALL OF FAMER!
Ok, now that I have that out of my system, let's talk special teams. We're talking return men, kickers, and punters. There are also the lesser-known long snappers and the up-and-coming guys trying to make a spot on the roster. If you ever need convincing of their importance, tune in to the Pat McAfee show as he is the creator of "For the Brand!". Pat was a college kicker, the Colts' punter, and NEARLY the Bears' kicker!
So why should a team make an effort to bring someone who plays less than 20% of each game? The big answer is momentum. Momentum is key in any sport. Special teams deserve more credit for the momentum they provide than what they are given. Kickers and punters can pinpoint a ball down to the one-yard line. Although we didn't win the 2006 Super Bowl, no one provided more motivation that day than Devin Hester's opening kick return. No one deflated an entire season faster than Cody Parkey's double doink. Another great example of the then "lesser-known" guy on special teams was Steve Gleason. His blocked punt for a touchdown, against the Falcons in 2006, gave hope to an entire city after hurricane Katrina. We could play "what-if" and think of what could have been if Robbie Gould was not dropped in 2016 because Pace thought he would retire soon.
The other way of looking at special teams is the way that Presentation College coach, Kevin Kelly, looks at punters. He never punts ! His thinking boils down to: statistically, you have a better chance of just converting on fourth down than you do stopping them and getting good enough field position. Maybe a team takes it a step further and decides they'd rather just go for two instead of kicking a PAT. This last year kickers made 92.5% doesn't sound like a terrible percentage, but this is the worst percentage since 1977.
The Bears just let longtime punter Pat O'Donnell go to the Packers. As of now, Ryan Wilson has the punting slot filled. He has been in the league four years and has punted in six games. Cairo Santo returns as the kicker. And to round it out we have Dazz Newsome and Khalil Herbert as our return men. Ryan Poles has made some moves to get more people on the team. They are the kind of guys that he's been looking for. He wants guys that are hungry for competition and want to be physical. Well, look no further than a team's kick-off squad. A bunch of head hunters who can open-field tackle. When looking at kickers and punters are you looking for a guy who can kick the leather off a ball or one that has touch and accuracy? A return man could be an absolute burner or a shifty guy with great field vision. Hester was a 2nd round corner. Dante Hall was a 5th round receiver. Some of the greatest kickers were all undrafted; Gould, Justin Tucker, Adam Vinatieri. That's one of the great things about special teams. You never know where they'll come from until they rise to the occasion.
Now I'm not saying we need to go all out as the Raiders did in 2000. When they took kicker, Sebastian Janikowski, in the first round with the 17th overall pick! But special team players usually come from lots of depth so that the starters can get a break and are less likely to get hurt. I would say look for a lot of undrafted free agents to be coming in after the draft. Looking for that diamond in the rough.
