Dawgs By Nature
25 questions with a former Cleveland specialist
Want to know something strange? Every NFL kicker, holder and long snapper wants to be involved in the last play of every game and the opportunity to kick the game-winning field goal.
RELATED: 2014 – LIFE AS AN NFL KICKER
Why is this odd? If they make the kick, then it is fun and games, rainbows and unicorns for all. However, if the kick fails, it is not only a loss in the record column, but it could mean the jobs of these three men. The next day. Gone. Released.
Yet, every specialist wants this scenario. They live for it.
The holder is usually the punter. Along with the long snapper, a missed field goal may not get these two fired unless it was their error that caused the flub. And even then, it would have to be a series of miscues before they would be considered for a release. But the kicker? That attempt could be his last in that uniform. Tomorrow, his agent will be on the phone looking for a new home for his client even if all 32 kicker spots are currently occupied.
The average lifespan in the NFL is 3.5 seasons. Kicker Billy Cundiff played 13 years in the NFL.
Not that his 13 seasons were pretty. No sir. He was well-traveled and got plenty of frequent flyer miles. He had lots of workouts, wore plenty of uniforms, and had a plethora of jersey numbers.
And although he was paid an NFL kicker rate, he did not make the kind of money to set his children up for life. A lot of fans believe that NFL players make bank and their great-grandchildren never have to work. The reality is, Cundiff himself had to get a job once he hung up his cleats. And he is still working.
Cundiff played for the Cleveland Browns in 2009, and then from 2013-2014. While with the Browns, he attempted 61 field goals and made 49 including three from 50+. His field goal percentage was 80.3% and was 64-64 on PATs. He scored 211 points with an average per game set a 6.2 points. He had 83 touchbacks on kickoffs with 9,267 kickoff yards.
His career NFL stats: 182 FG conversions on 239 attempts, 8 for 28 on kicks of 50+, 76.2 FG conversion percentage, made 277 of 278 PATs (one blocked), scored 823 points, 6.1 points per game average, had 191 touchbacks on kickoffs with 32,074 kickoff yards.
Cundiff grew up in Harlan, Iowa which at the time had a population of about 5,000 with a space of approximately three miles by three miles. Everyone knew everyone, and everyone looked out for each other’s kids.
Cundiff excelled in sports.
He was one of the state’s top high jumpers at Harlan Community High School as he finished second in the 1997 State Class 3-A track meet with a jump of 6’, 6”. He led the basketball team to a state runner-up finish his...
