What to do with Mason Crosby?

[GeeDogWarrior]

Give Shawn Slocum a Bane mask - have him break Crosby's leg - throw him in a Prison Hole - if Crosby climbs out with a new found determination or remembering the basics - then blah - if he can't climb - then get nate kaeding?

 

[rodell330]

Someone suggested earlier for MM to "baby him" ...the only problem i have with that is doesn't that make him even more less confident? this is your range Mason but hey you're not dependable right now so i'd rather have my all pro qb and solid group of wr's go for it?? i'm all for that!!!! maybe it'll get his head out of his butt if he takes it personally.

 

[I asked LT to delete my acct]

Someone suggested earlier for MM to "baby him" ...the only problem i have with that is doesn't that make him even more less confident? this is your range Mason but hey you're not dependable right now so i'd rather have my all pro qb and solid group of wr's go for it?? i'm all for that!!!! maybe it'll get his head out of his butt if he takes it personally.

his whole demeanor when we went for it on fourth down showed he`s taken it personally. The problem he KNOWS it was the right call too. Crosby needs to do whatever it takes to get out of this slump before it costs us a BIG game.

 

[longtimefan]

then get nate kaeding?

How is his bad groin? That is pretty important to a kicker

 

[rodell330]

his whole demeanor when we went for it on fourth down showed he`s taken it personally. The problem he KNOWS it was the right call too. Crosby needs to do whatever it takes to get out of this slump before it costs us a BIG game.

Good! i'm glad he took it personally, make the dang kicks you won't have to get your feeling's hurt.

 

[rodell330]

How is his bad groin? That is pretty important to a kicker

It has to still be an issue or else this guy would have a job. At least you would think so.

 

[longtimefan]

It has to still be an issue or else this guy would have a job. At least you would think so.

Kickers do not get picked up to often during season I think...But I am sure the wheels are spinning at 1265 on what if Mason misses more FG

 

[I asked LT to delete my acct]

Good! i'm glad he took it personally, make the dang kicks you won't have to get your feeling's hurt.

I TOTALLY agree with you mate !

 

[GreenBlood]

I think he'll bounce back; he's a seriously gifted kicker (God, help me). Though I'm not sure I've seen a kicker of his caliber go through this kind of slump. It's gotten pretty god-damn old.

Gary Anderson had a slump in the late 80's (either '87 or '88 because it was when I lived in western Ohio for two years) where he only hit something like 40% of his kicks over a month long stretch. Steeler fans were saying the same crap about him. ("He's washed up!" "He was never very good anyway." "There are plenty of guys they could sign off the street" etc...) When he came out of it, he ended up hitting all but one of his kicks for the remainder of the season.

 

[GreenBlood]

Remember --- season long issues..... Masthay and Goode both are the same this year as from last year when Crosby hit for 80+%.

You underestimate the role the holder has in a successful kick and how much of a skill holding is when you are expecting an 80%+ conversion rate, especially on anything past 40 yards.

Patience may NOT be enough as it is VERY easy to place an insurance policy on the practice squad in the advent that Crosby doesn't reverse course.

Okay, who would you put on the practice squad then?

 

[GreenBlood]

Crosby is that guy right now. He's hitting them where they start right and then slice right. Then he starts it left, and it hooks left. He's not controlling which way it moves..... I am just wondering why he can't kick the f***** ball end over end where it goes straight. Stop trying to fade or draw the ball. Kick the thing straight.

It's a lot easier when the laces are straight.

 

[GreenBlood]

All he does is kick!!!! that's it people...he's not throwing the ball, he's not tackling, blocking, catching passes, he kicks the entire practice. His issue is mental point blank. You can look at his body language and see he doesn't wanna even attempt a FG....that's not a good sign, especially when we need point's on the board and he's going out there missing very makeable kicks. I guarantee you he was in the coaching office this morning 1 on 1 with MM. The LAST thing you need is a head case at kicker. I like Crosby i really do but this is a job...a job he gets paid well for. He's still got a job because of his past accolades...that is it because he would have been cut in any other circumstance.

Masthay needs to be in there too. He shares blame. Lot's of people here who has no clue into how complex a FG attempt is. I think it's time to link back to my post on the subject from a couple years ago:

http://www.packerforum.com/threads/whats-with-all-the-crosby-hate.23777/page-6#post-317058

 

[longtimefan]

Masthay needs to be in there two. He shares blame. Lot's of people here who has no clue into how complex a FG attempt is. I think it's time to link back to my post on the subject from a couple years ago:

http://www.packerforum.com/threads/whats-with-all-the-crosby-hate.23777/page-6#post-317058

http://www.jsonline.com/sports/pack...by-alters-his-approach-1v7beo7-175723161.html

That says it is Mason's issue--- this was from a month ago

On Monday, special teams coach Shawn Slocum said Crosby was hurrying his kicks, which caused his mechanics to fall apart.

That hasn't been the case inside the 50, where he's 7 of 7.

"He's 100 percent at everything below 50, and we're one out of four in kicks above 50," Slocum said. "The thing we've got to do as we move forward is just keep that same rhythm and tempo into the kick."

Crosby said he hit 10 to 15 balls from 50 or more yards during warm-ups Wednesday and made most of them. He said he made sure his swing was exactly the same as it would be if he were kicking from 40 to 49 yards.

"We tried a 54-yarder in the situation stuff and nailed it right through," Crosby said. "I just have to stay smooth and stay slow and let my leg strength do its job, not try to overswing.."

You have a coach saying it is the holder's issue?

 

[milani]

Certainly we need a reliable kicker for the rest of this season. But we also need one for the next season as well.
Kickers can always be found at some point in the season. Now an OLineman, which we desparately need, are not easy to locate.
I remember Longwell having a difficult year in 200, his last as a Packer. A lot of it had to do with the change in holder that season after Doug Peterson departed. So he goes to the Vikings and pretty much never missed.
Lombardi blundered in 1964 by not getting a full time reliable kicker. He went on to shop for veteran Don Chandler who kicked for us in those last 3 championship years.

 

[LZ13]

Masthay needs to be in there too. He shares blame. Lot's of people here who has no clue into how complex a FG attempt is. I think it's time to link back to my post on the subject from a couple years ago:

http://www.packerforum.com/threads/whats-with-all-the-crosby-hate.23777/page-6#post-317058

Or take a look at the college stats, as I did yesterday. Of the stats of the top 10 kickers, some would be booed out of the NFL by today's standards. How often do we expect a college kicker to make even a 45 yd kick? They have the athletic ability (more so than some old fat nfl kicker) and supposedly it is an easy task, so why can't they make the kicks like we typically see made in the NFL?

Oh and BTW, nice post GreenBlood. The holder is very important. I remember when B J Sander was holding for Longwell - he had a heck of a time making the extra points and in fact missed one that cost us a game. Longwell was very vocal about Sander as his holder as I remember.

 

[JBlood]

The team psychiatrist needs to give him electroshock treatment tomorrow. He'll be fine by Sunday.

 

[Oshkoshpackfan]

Or take a look at the college stats, as I did yesterday. Of the stats of the top 10 kickers, some would be booed out of the NFL by today's standards. How often do we expect a college kicker to make even a 45 yd kick? They have the athletic ability (more so than some old fat nfl kicker) and supposedly it is an easy task, so why can't they make the kicks like we typically see made in the NFL?

Oh and BTW, nice post GreenBlood. The holder is very important. I remember when B J Sander was holding for Longwell - he had a heck of a time making the extra points and in fact missed one that cost us a game. Longwell was very vocal about Sander as his holder as I remember.

I don't know a ton about kicking, but maybe the college % is less due to the fact that the hash marks are spread further apart and when you have that much more of an angle to kick from it might just more difficult to judge wind+ angle and adjust for it.

 

[GreenBlood]

Or take a look at the college stats, as I did yesterday. Of the stats of the top 10 kickers, some would be booed out of the NFL by today's standards. How often do we expect a college kicker to make even a 45 yd kick? They have the athletic ability (more so than some old fat nfl kicker) and supposedly it is an easy task, so why can't they make the kicks like we typically see made in the NFL?

Oh and BTW, nice post GreenBlood. The holder is very important. I remember when B J Sander was holding for Longwell - he had a heck of a time making the extra points and in fact missed one that cost us a game. Longwell was very vocal about Sander as his holder as I remember.

That's true. I forgot about that. Wasn't that the year he only made something like 68% of his kicks? People were ready to run him out on a rail too.

 

[GreenBlood]

I don't know a ton about kicking, but maybe the college % is less due to the fact that the hash marks are spread further apart and when you have that much more of an angle to kick from it might just more difficult to judge wind+ angle and adjust for it.

Some of the toughest kicks in football are college hashmark kicks from the 8 to 15 yard line, especially the right hashmark for a right-footed kicker.

 

[HardRightEdge]

Some of the toughest kicks in football are college hashmark kicks from the 8 to 15 yard line, especially the right hashmark for a right-footed kicker.

True, but college goal posts are wider:

"The goal posts are also different widths. The college uprights are 23′ 4″ apart, while the NFL gives its kickers a much narrower target – 18′ 6″ between the posts. This somewhat offsets the extra angle college kickers face with their wider hash-marks."

http://www.espnamerica.com/oo/f1/hide-from-menu/differences-between-ncaa-and-nfl-football/

 

[TJV]

What to do with Crosby? Pray he regains his form from last season, because I don’t think he's going anywhere. McCarthy has said Crosby is mentally tough and Wayne Larrivee recently said he shares that opinion. When either of them says it, I get the feeling they mean compared to most kickers - although they don't say it. This will be a good test whether or not it's true.

BTW I haven't heard a single complaint about, or criticism of, Goode the LS or Masthay the holder. It's certainly true that all three are vital to successful place kicking, but I think the problem resides solely with Mason. Mostly between his ears.

 

[rodell330]

Remember Mike Vanderjagcht? or however you spell his name from Indy? He was one of the most decorated kickers in the league at one point. The guy went into a "slump" and kicked his way right out the league. A good kicker can play for about 18- 20 yr's if he's ACCURATE....leg strength is just a bonus. If crosby was accurate to go along with his leg strength he would be all world. He's not even a top five kicker in the league at his point... yet he makes a pretty good salary like a top 5 kicker would. Top kickers in the league imo. Two of these guy's are rookies btw, and Crosby's annual salary is more than 80% of the guy's on this list. I think he makes like 2.95 a yr

*no particular order

Blair Walsch Minnesota

Greg Zuerlein St. Louis

Robbie Gould Chicago (last yr of his contract)

Matt Prater Denver

Sebastian Janikowski Oakland

Stephen Gostkowski New england

David Akers San Fran

 

[LZ13]

In the 2005 season Longwell missed an extra point that prevented the tie in game 2 against TB. It was a high snap and Sander could not handle it in time. In game 6 against MN, Longwell missed two field goals - we lost by 3. Longwell was gone after that season, only to be picked up my MN. Ironically, we lost in 2008 to MN via a missed Crosby 53 yd attempt with time running out 27/28. Crosby was 2 of 3 and Longwell 1 of 2 with a 54 yarder good.

And now Longwell is gone,after giving MN some of his best years.

 

[longtimefan]

BTW I haven't heard a single complaint about, or criticism of, Goode the LS or Masthay the holder. It's certainly true that all three are vital to successful place kicking, but I think the problem resides solely with Mason. Mostly between his ears.

That s why I posted the story showing the coaches said Crosby was having bad mechanics

 

[PWT]

In 2001 Longwell has his worst year kicking FGs for Packers. He attempted 31 FGs and made 20 FGs (64 percent).

In 2005 Longwell attempted 27 FGs and made 27 FGs (74 percent)

Yet Longwell came back strong and kicked until 2011 with Vikings.