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Are Kickers Football players?

TheTim5125

Waterboy
I say yes, there's a lot of pressure being a kicker. Game winning kicks, Coffin punts, deep kick offs. Football is a team sport and a kicker is part of the team. Who is the NFL leading scorer? a kicker... we need these guys. What do you think?
 

Ihategeeks

Veteran
I think they play on a football team.
therefore are football players.

But thats just me, using my silly logic.
 

TEXANS84

Moderator
Staff member
A field goal kickers stress level is definitley higher than that of a punter. But they all have to contribute on special teams, including tackles-some pretty, most not so much.
 

jagfan29

Practice Squad
They are players to me.They have pressure on them to win games,and save games with a tackle on occasion.plus i bet they are in better physical shape than other sports...cough....golf.lol
 
S

SESupergenius

Guest
They are about as much a football player as one of the guys on the side of the tennis court that picks up the balls are tennis pros. Please, they are overglorified. They get way to much attention just like a relief pitcher does when he throws a few pitches to end a ball game. They should even wear helmets, its useless. They don't hardly wear any pads and the facemask it thing tampon, errr i mean bar across the face. If we didn't have kickers I wouldn't miss them.
 

SheTexan

Hall of Fame
SESupergenius said:
They are about as much a football player as one of the guys on the side of the tennis court that picks up the balls are tennis pros. Please, they are overglorified. They get way to much attention just like a relief pitcher does when he throws a few pitches to end a ball game. They should even wear helmets, its useless. They don't hardly wear any pads and the facemask it thing tampon, errr i mean bar across the face. If we didn't have kickers I wouldn't miss them.
Yea, I guess the Patriots REALLY hate kickers!!
 

aj.

All Pro
Our kicker is one helluva athlete and football player. He was an All-State QB at Southlake Carroll. He is a guy willing (to a fault sometimes) to stick his head in there and make a tackle on returns. He didn't stop being a football player all of a sudden when he became a kicker.

Less athletic types like Martin Gramatica and jerks like Vanderjagt reinforce the stereotype.
 

Ihategeeks

Veteran
The Lions kicker if he gets lined up, will actually try and lay people out on occasion.

Which Chris Speilman shamelessly takes credit for teaching him how to do.

:coolb:

Also who is that guy that Punts/Kicks and does KR for the Dolphins?
I would say he is a football player.

Kickers occasionally are asked to chase and tackle guys on kickoffs.

There are guys on a football team who have 1 job. Run into the wedge. Snap the football. Hold the ball on the kickoff.

They are the pawns.
But they are still peices to the game.
If it were something any person could do, there would be more people trying to do it. And alot more would be very good at it.
 

JustBonee

Veteran
aj. said:
Our kicker is one helluva athlete and football player. He was an All-State QB at Southlake Carroll. He is a guy willing (to a fault sometimes) to stick his head in there and make a tackle on returns. He didn't stop being a football player all of a sudden when he became a kicker..
I'll second that! Kris Brown has shown many times that he isn't afraid to lay people out.
 

nunusguy

Hall of Fame
To me, more than anything else football is a contact sport (like in "physical"
contact). There's just one category of team members who aren't intended to
participate in the contact. Draw your conclusions from that.
 

Porky

Hall of Fame
I think you can answer this two ways - Are kickers football players. No question about that. Ummm, let's see. They are on a football field, wearing football clothing, and hemet, and are listed on a football roster. I think this qualifies them as a football player.

Now, a seperate question is are they athletes? Well, many are good athletes, including our own Kris Brown. Others are probably not anywhere near the same class of ahtlete as the other players on the field, but that doesn't mean they are not valuable. One could argue that they are the most important player on the field, bar none, including the QB. They have to be in overall good shape, and in good health to do what they do. I feel they do qualify as athletes, more so than your average golfer, but not as much as the other athletes on the field with them. None of that makes them less valuable though.
 

TheOgre

All Pro
They are football players but they are not part of the team. They are the tax auditors, hall monitors, internal affairs of the team, basically the outcasts on the team.
 

jagualex

Practice Squad
I think that all of us are more apt to say that yes they are because we are simpathetic to them and they are the closest to being like us...physically i mean
 

texasguy346

Mod Squad
Ihategeeks said:
Also who is that guy that Punts/Kicks and does KR for the Dolphins?
I would say he is a football player.
I think you're thinking of Wes Welker. He started out as a KR for the Chargers, but they let him go and he signed with the Dolphins at a similiar position. He did the place kicking duties for the 'Phins for one game I think before they brought in another kicker. He is a WR by trade, but he faired pretty well kicking some XP for the Dolphins.



TheOgre said:
Speak for yourself. I'm closer to a lineman (6'3", 280 lbs.) than a kicker.
Well I'm 6'3" and about 250 so I'm either a MLB or perhaps a TE that could add a few pounds.
 
aj. said:
Our kicker is one helluva athlete and football player. He was an All-State QB at Southlake Carroll. He is a guy willing (to a fault sometimes) to stick his head in there and make a tackle on returns. He didn't stop being a football player all of a sudden when he became a kicker.

Less athletic types like Martin Gramatica and jerks like Vanderjagt reinforce the stereotype.
ok, maybe you didn't know Vady also played a little WR in college.
 

TheOgre

All Pro
Vinny said:
Heck, we are about the same size cept that I'm a little shorter than you. I'm the no-talent nose Tackle type as well as not being able to keeek touchdowns (Tony Frisch reference).
I played OT and DT in high school. I had a bit of talent but was sorely lacking in quickness and speed. I had good lower body strength, but I was a late developer in terms of my upper body.
 

ledzeppelin229

Hall of Fame
Kicking may not be the same kind of football from a linebacker or a runningback, but it does take a high level of skill and technique and they face gigantic pressure (especially if they are already considered somewhat of an outcast in ways)

It's obviously a difficult position to play, probably the hardest to be versatile in (as in, be as fast or strong as you possibly can but it doesn't mean you can kick a field goal worth a damn)

As for being the size of a kicker, I guess that could fit me. I'm about 6'2" 170. Playing tennis doesn't exactly add bulk but I could be an extremely slow WR, decent hands for never playing football on a team.
 
S

SESupergenius

Guest
An athlete is one thing, a football player is another. Brown proves my point by being injured trying to tackle real football players. How many of you own or have ever owned a kickers jersey? There you have it. Please buy your kid a nice jersey with a kickers number on it for his birthday if you think he is a football player. :listening
 

gg no re

iggnorent
By your definition, QBs would not count as football players, right? Most of those stupid guys can't run the football even if their life depended on it.....

The role of a kicker is to kick first, everything else second. Would you rather your kicker work on tackling technique or staying in top kicking form?

And don't bring that jersey argument into this.... that's some weak stuff. People don't wear kicker jerseys not because they don't think kickers are major players.... it's because people want to wear the jerseys of highlight reel players like TO and Vick.
 

SheTexan

Hall of Fame
I'd wear a Kris Brown jersy with pride, if I had one! Come to think about it, MAYBE I will have one made!

Every player has a role to play, some more prolific than others, BUT, it takes them all to make a TEAM!!

Is a long snapper a football player???
 
S

SESupergenius

Guest
gg no re said:
By your definition, QBs would not count as football players, right? Most of those stupid guys can't run the football even if their life depended on it......
Let's see, the QB has the ball more than any other player, passes and runs with with ball on more than any other player and gets pounded repeated by 300+ pount linemen. I'd say he's a football player. A kick comes in maybe 5-8 plays a game, wears skimpy gear, can't tackle, pass or run very well (outside of the occasional trick play) and who's only job to kick a ball through a stationary set of poles. Nope, no comparison. Every player has pressure to do their job so that argument doens't hold water.

gg no re said:
The role of a kicker is to kick first, everything else second. Would you rather your kicker work on tackling technique or staying in top kicking form?.
I rather not have kickers period. You must really enjoy watching the kickers, aren't they so sweet?

gg no re said:
And don't bring that jersey argument into this.... that's some weak stuff. People don't wear kicker jerseys not because they don't think kickers are major players.... it's because people want to wear the jerseys of highlight reel players like TO and Vick.
Right people don't don't wear kickers jerseys because they are the regarded as the weakest of the football personnel. I've seen jerseys for QB, RB, TE, G, C, T, DE, DT, LB, SS, FS, and CB.......never seen one for a kicker. If you consider Sharper a highlight reel guy then you need to go ahead and buy your kicker jersey now.



Is a long snapper a football player? Barely, but at least they have to block and can backup other players on the line. Football is a physical sport, Outside of the occasional goof up nothing about a kicker is physical.
 

ledzeppelin229

Hall of Fame
Sesupergenius said:
I rather not have kickers period. You must really enjoy watching the kickers, aren't they so sweet?
Did one of these guys kick you in the groin or something? I've never seen someone with so much dislike/disrespect towards a kicker. Next time Kris Brown has the last second deciding kick for us, we can bring this comment back up. The fact is there's only one, possibly two guys on our team that we could count on to make a kick that could one day win the Super Bowl for us (theoretically) but you would rather them not even be on the team for some "he don't take showers with the rest of us" reason.
 

gg no re

iggnorent
Um... SESupergenius(You sure this is good name?), a few counter remarks....

Nope, no comparison. Every player has pressure to do their job so that argument doens't hold water.
That's my point. Why trash the kicker then when he has as much responsibility as everyone else?

Sounds like the type of guy who badmouths the sniper for not getting involved in gunfights.

I've seen jerseys for QB, RB, TE, G, C, T, DE, DT, LB, SS, FS, and CB.......never seen one for a kicker.
Because kickers aren't highlight reel people. All those positions you threw down are highlight reel/high impact/bigmouth jerk spots.
 
Super, your argument that Brown isn't a football player because he got injured trying to tackle someone really doesn't hold much water. Ray Lewis has been injured trying to tackle someone. Come to think of it....so has Brian Urlacher, Dunta Robinson, Seth Payne, and a plethora of other players. It's the guys who are too afraid to lay the wood who aren't real football players in my book. The fact that Kris Brown went full speed ahead for a big hit just further proves his worth as a player.
 

gg no re

iggnorent
Wooo.... I missed that pic..... did anyone say.... OWNED!!!

good game no rematch kickers are your friends
 

CoachJim

Waterboy
TheOgre said:
I played OT and DT in high school. I had a bit of talent but was sorely lacking in quickness and speed. I had good lower body strength, but I was a late developer in terms of my upper body.
Speaking of has-been talent, the league in which I coach little league football in held their 1st annual "Old Glory Days" coaches game early last December in which I participated in. This was full contact, helment & pads - the works, except with a few rule amendments. There were no kickoffs. Teams got the ball on the 20. No blitz on D & we could only run 5 down linemen. I played about 20 plays at MLB & it was a blast. Imagine a bunch of 30-40 something+ guys out there thinking they were still in their 20s. We had 2 EMTs on stand-by, fully loaded & fortunatley we had no major injuries except for the common cramps, bumps & bruises. I'll lay down a link here at the end for those interested to see a couple of pix of the fundraiser. We plan on doing it every year to help the league with kids signup fees. This is probably a little off-topic but I felt I had to share it with this thread conversation turning the way it did. By the way, I'm #54 in Battle Red.

TIFI Old Glory Days Game Pictures
 
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