KODs - Gould, Wilkins, & Kaeding (1 Viewer)

[Mike Herman]

Every year several players start off great, and are on pace to shatter some record. Very very few sustain that early pace. Robbie Gould and Jeff Wilkins have both scored 50 points after four games. That puts them on pace to score 200 points. Gary Anderson holds the season record of 164 points.

How does this compare to other players' first four games?

The two kickers that ended up as the top two scorers last year:

Neil Rackers 50 after 4 games (ended up with 140; Nick Novak had 9 points in the game Rackers missed)

Jay Feely 40 (ended up with 148)

The two kickers that had a near record year in 2003:

Jeff Wilkins 40 (ended up with 163, 2nd most ever)

Mike Vanderjagt 48 (ended up with 157, 4th most ever)

 

[BigDave]

I dropped Gould yesterday to play Carney. Ouch!!!

SEA was supposed to be tough! Wow was everyone wrong on that one. Chicago dominated. Gould kicks like crazy and that's a 9 point swing for me. Hopefully it won't hurt me after tonight.

By the way, guess who I probably won't be able to get back off the WW

 

[gheemony]

Every year several players start off great, and are on pace to shatter some record. Very very few sustain that early pace. Robbie Gould and Jeff Wilkins have both scored 50 points after four games. That puts them on pace to score 200 points. Gary Anderson holds the season record of 164 points.How does this compare to other players' first four games? The two kickers that ended up as the top two scorers last year:Neil Rackers 50 after 4 games (ended up with 140; Nick Novak had 9 points in the game Rackers missed)Jay Feely 40 (ended up with 148)The two kickers that had a near record year in 2003:Jeff Wilkins 40 (ended up with 163, 2nd most ever)Mike Vanderjagt 48 (ended up with 157, 4th most ever)

Mike:You seem to be suggesting that we shouldn't expect 12+ points a game for the rest of the year from Gould and Wilkins. Fair enough. But the stats you laid out suggest that Gould and Wilkins are going to be top 5 - if not the top - kickers this season. Basically, you're saying that the first 4 weeks of the season are reliable predictors of future performance. And since kickers are hard to predict from year-to-year, that we should jump on Gould and Wilkins and ignore their stats from last season. Sound right?I know that many ignore kickers, but I think people have to acknowledge that a superb kicker on hot streak can make a huge difference (see Rackers last year). I think you're the guru of kickers and if you tell me Gould is going to be this year's version of Rackers, then I am buying in. (FYI, I picked up Gould this week as a bye week replacement for Elam. I was planning to trade him so that I didn't take up salary cap space with two kickers. But if Gould is this year's Racker's, I would hold on to him and trade Elam after Gould's bye week).Mike, your followers want to know what you think. Thanks for the great work.

 

[bstinman]

I dropped Gould yesterday to play Carney. Ouch!!!SEA was supposed to be tough! Wow was everyone wrong on that one. Chicago dominated. Gould kicks like crazy and that's a 9 point swing for me. Hopefully it won't hurt me after tonight. By the way, guess who I probably won't be able to get back off the WW

Although I own Gould, long term I like Wilkins chances at the record better. 1. Its going to be much tougher for Gould to kick in Chicago come winter than Wilkins in the dome.2. Rams offense is good, red zone offense is bad which equals a ton of field goal opportunities.

 

[fred_1_15301]

I dropped Gould yesterday to play Carney. Ouch!!!SEA was supposed to be tough! Wow was everyone wrong on that one. Chicago dominated. Gould kicks like crazy and that's a 9 point swing for me. Hopefully it won't hurt me after tonight. By the way, guess who I probably won't be able to get back off the WW

Oh man I won't be dropping Gould this year. I would sooner drop the likes of Fred Taylor or Maurice Morris......

 

[Jackal King]

I dropped Gould yesterday to play Carney. Ouch!!!SEA was supposed to be tough! Wow was everyone wrong on that one. Chicago dominated. Gould kicks like crazy and that's a 9 point swing for me. Hopefully it won't hurt me after tonight. By the way, guess who I probably won't be able to get back off the WW

Oh man I won't be dropping Gould this year. I would sooner drop the likes of Fred Taylor or Maurice Morris......

I have the unusual good fortune of having both of these guys in one league. I almost sat Wilkens after seeing Gould ranked higher in the weekly Kickermania...but I decided that Detroit was going to be a lot more porous than Seattle. Neither defenses seemed to play into the equation...but Wilkens was great again, even though he missed his 5th and final attempt.

 

[bbuster]

I'm starting to think Kickers are underrated in FF. I still would never advocate picking them early, but for a position that is considered expendable, Kickers have been killing me this year. Even though, I didn't grab Kickers early this year, I still thought I was solid at the position. In various leagues, I own guys like Elam, Brown, Stover, Rackers, and Kaeding. After Wilkins blew up against me yesterday, I looked back on the scoring in my league over the last few weeks and found that other teams Kickers are beating me 195-109.

I was able to pick up Gould in one league to cover Elam this week during his bye. Now I'm torn. I don't want to keep 2 Kickers in this particular league because the rosters are small. I never thought I would be cutting a Kicker like Elam, but Gould and his 12pt average vs Elam and his 6 obviously needs to stay on my roster.

Since I've been struggling this year with close games, Kickers are looking more important than ever. I wish there was some magical formula for predicting what a Kicker is going to do.

I can't even believe I'm spending this much time thinking about Kickers.

 

[Mike Herman]

Pat Mannelly did not have to see the kicks to tell the difference. He heard it. The long snapper was on the field early, a year ago Saturday, as the Bears scrambled to replace kicker Doug Brien 48 hours before a game at Cleveland. Veterans Steve Christie, Martin Gramatica and Tim Seder joined Carter Warley and a mystery kicker -- Robbie Gould -- in a tryout before practice. ''I had zero clue who he was,'' Mannelly said. ''The only thing I knew is you heard a louder pop when he hit it. That, and the trajectory of his kicks. A lot of guys, when they get older, the flight of the ball starts coming down. He was kicking them way up the uprights every time.'' Holder Brad Maynard walked away figuring the Bears had better pick Gould, an unknown to him, as well. Mannelly knew Gould won the kick-off but was not so sure he would be signed. ''[With] the kicking woes we had had in the past,'' Mannelly said, ''I didn't know if they were willing to take a chance on a rookie.''

Gould is 13-for-13 on field goals, and his bugaboo last season -- he was 3-for-8 from 40 yards and beyond -- is in the past. He has hit five from that range already, thanks to having an offseason to adjust to the two-step approach he was taught in New England by special-teams coach Brad Seely. He was a three-step kicker at Penn State but was converted in camp last summer as an undrafted free agent. Seely and Adam Vinatieri got him on the right track quickly, and he stays in close touch with both. The Patriots were looking to sign him to their practice squad, but the Bears had seen his strong leg on preseason tape and figured he was worth inspecting.

link

 

[Mike Herman]

Post Week 5 Update:

Wilkins now on pace for 195 points

Gould now on pace for 211 points

Nate Kaeding on pace for 172 points

 

[urbanhack]

Pat Mannelly did not have to see the kicks to tell the difference. He heard it. The long snapper was on the field early, a year ago Saturday, as the Bears scrambled to replace kicker Doug Brien 48 hours before a game at Cleveland. Veterans Steve Christie, Martin Gramatica and Tim Seder joined Carter Warley and a mystery kicker -- Robbie Gould -- in a tryout before practice. ''I had zero clue who he was,'' Mannelly said. ''The only thing I knew is you heard a louder pop when he hit it. That, and the trajectory of his kicks. A lot of guys, when they get older, the flight of the ball starts coming down. He was kicking them way up the uprights every time.'' Holder Brad Maynard walked away figuring the Bears had better pick Gould, an unknown to him, as well. Mannelly knew Gould won the kick-off but was not so sure he would be signed. ''[With] the kicking woes we had had in the past,'' Mannelly said, ''I didn't know if they were willing to take a chance on a rookie.''

Gould is 13-for-13 on field goals, and his bugaboo last season -- he was 3-for-8 from 40 yards and beyond -- is in the past. He has hit five from that range already, thanks to having an offseason to adjust to the two-step approach he was taught in New England by special-teams coach Brad Seely. He was a three-step kicker at Penn State but was converted in camp last summer as an undrafted free agent. Seely and Adam Vinatieri got him on the right track quickly, and he stays in close touch with both. The Patriots were looking to sign him to their practice squad, but the Bears had seen his strong leg on preseason tape and figured he was worth inspecting.

link

 

[Mike Herman]

What do they need to average from here on out, in order to break the season scoring record?

9.0 ppg Gould

9.5 ppg Wilkins

10.2 ppg Kaeding

 

[Mike Herman]

Week 6 Monday morning update:

Kaeding is on pace to score 176 points (needs to average 10.0 ppg from here onwards to break the record).

Wilkins is on pace to score 173 points (needs to average 10.0 ppg from here onwards to break the record).

The frontrunner Gould plays tonight.

 

[Mike Herman]

After the Arizona game, Gould is on pace to score 192 points (needs to average 9.3 ppg from here onwards to break the record).

 

[Mike Herman]

Update after 8 weeks:

Gould is on pace to score 190 points (needs to average 9.1 ppg from here onwards to break the record).

Kaeding is on pace to score 165 points (needs to average 10.3 ppg from here onwards to break the record).

Wilkins is on pace to score 162 points (needs to average 10.4 ppg from here onwards to break the record).

 

[Sonny Lubick Blowup Doll]

 

[Bwanna]

Update after 8 weeks:Gould is on pace to score 190 points (needs to average 9.1 ppg from here onwards to break the record).Kaeding is on pace to score 165 points (needs to average 10.3 ppg from here onwards to break the record).Wilkins is on pace to score 162 points (needs to average 10.4 ppg from here onwards to break the record).

Don't forget Vinatieri. After missing 3 games, Vinatieri is averaging 13.3 ppg and is on a pace to score 172.

 

[cracKer]

We joked about it earlier in the year, but could Robbie Gould win the MVP? Along with being on pace to break the leagues scoring record, as mentioned above, he's on pace to break Neil Rackers' FGM record from a year ago (40/42, only 20 PAT).

Mark Moseley is the only kicker to win the award, and that was in the strike shortened 1982 season (21/21 FG, 16/19 PAT). Moseley's 1983 season was impressive, although he missed quite a few field goals (33/47 FG, 62/63 PAT, 161 points).

If the Bears offense continues to excel down the stretch, Gould would have to be considered...no?

 

[Chase Stuart]

If the Bears offense continues to excel down the stretch, Gould would have to be considered...no?

Not really. If Gould was hitting 4 FGs in games the Bears win 12-10, maybe. But he's hitting four FGs in games the Bears win 47-7.

 

[meatwad1]

If the Bears offense continues to excel down the stretch, Gould would have to be considered...no?

Not really. If Gould was hitting 4 FGs in games the Bears win 12-10, maybe. But he's hitting four FGs in games the Bears win 47-7.

I am a Gould owner and from watching the games, he has a perfect combiation that sets him up for success.One, he has an offense that is good, but not great, so he gets a fair amount of fg opportunities.Two, the D is great, so they are frequently giving him turnovers that are right in fg range. There have been two games this year when the Bears were on cruise control, not interested/needing to score at all, then the D gets a TO and puts them right in range to do 3 lazy runs and a fg attempt.Third, he is a great kicker...he looks unflappable and he is accurate...I feel that he will break the record this year.

 

[Mike Herman]

Update after 9 weeks:

Gould is on pace to score 180 points (needs to average 9.4 ppg from here onwards to break the record).

Kaeding is on pace to score 156 points (needs to average 10.9 ppg from here onwards to break the record).

Wilkins is on pace to score 152 points (needs to average 11.1 ppg from here onwards to break the record).

 

[Mike Herman]

Update after 10 weeks:

Gould is on pace to score 174 points (needs to average 9.6 ppg from here onwards to break the record).

Wilkins is on pace to score 153 points (needs to average 11.3 ppg from here onwards to break the record).

Kaeding is on pace to score 151 points (needs to average 11.4 ppg from here onwards to break the record).

 

[Mike Herman]

Update after 11 weeks... a slow week for all three:

Gould is on pace to score 163 points (needs to average 10.5 ppg from here onwards to break the record).

Kaeding is on pace to score 144 points (needs to average 12.5 ppg from here onwards to break the record).

Wilkins is on pace to score 138 points (needs to average 13.2 ppg from here onwards to break the record).