Jason Myers kicking for more
For the better part of a decade the Jacksonville Jaguars and its fans were treated to watch a player’s game, character, and personality grow and develop to become a fan favorite on the team. Josh Scobee’s field goals were sometimes the only highlight during a game. And I will never forget when he hit the 59-yard field goal against the Indianapolis colts in 2010 to win the game as time expired. Scobee provided plenty of electric moments, and as a fan I will always be grateful for his hard work.
But this post isn’t about Josh Scobee, it’s about his replacement, Jason Myers. Competition has always been a theme for the Jags, and last season it came as a bit of a surprise when the team traded away Josh Scobee to the Pittsburgh Steelers for a sixth round draft pick. This trade was about more than getting value for an aging player, but also showed the confidence the Jags had in the young kicker behind him. However, when the Jags traded Scobee away they also traded his years of experience and game winning kicks for a relatively unknown kicking prospect in Myers.
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The Jags turned to the young undrafted kicker out of Marist College who had spent time in the Arena Football League with the Arizona Rattlers and San Jose Sabercats. The transition from AFL to NFL is far from automatic, and we knew there would be growing pains. The first game of the season against the Carolina Panthers started out with a mixed result going 1 of 2, having missed an extra point and field goal for a 50% conversion rate. However, compare that with Carolina Panthers kicker and FSU alumni,
Graham Gano, who went 2 of 4, also 50%. In the second game of the season Myers delivered, hitting a 58-yard field goal to end the half and a 28-yard field goal to win the game. The season began to look promising for the first year player. However In week 4 against the Indianapolis Colts, Myers missed two game winning kicks from 53 and 48 yards, pulling them right. The jags eventually lost in overtime and it hurt knowing they could have won the game.
In 2015 the NFL chose to move extra points back to the 15-yard line in hopes this would have an more exciting effect on kickers extra points being so automatic. It affected Myers to the tune of seven missed PAT in the 2015 season, the highest among kickers in the league. Myers will no doubt need to improve in this area in the off season, but I found it silly last when fans started calling for him to lose his job over it. People are quick to forget against the Baltimore Ravens Myers hit the 53 yard game winner with no time left on the clock.
While Myers rookie campaign wasn’t all that noteworthy, if you compare first year kicking percentages between Myers (86.7%), and Scobee (77.4%), Myers was actually a bit better. As far as distance goes, Myers hit a 58-yard field goal against the dolphins, and Scobee’s career long was 59-yards. However, it took Scobee seven years to hit from that distance. Watch for Myers to develop into a consistent threat on special teams this season.
Finding a reliable kicker in this league isn’t always easy, as evident by the rash of injuries Pittsburg had last year, and this year the Buccaneers spent a 2nd round in this year’s draft on FSU alumni Robert Aguayo. The position is becoming valuable and having a reliable kicker can take a lot of stress off the rest of the team. So let’s support Myers the same we did Scobee, giving him time to develop and grow will only help the team and I applaud the coach’s for sticking with him. As a fan I am looking forward to watching his progress as the 2016 season rolls around.