DawgTalkers.net Forums The Archives 2015 NFL Season The NFL Draft 2015 Our Second Biggest Draft Need

Our second biggest draft need is a reliable kicker. We could have had 3 more wins and been in the playoffs if not for crucial missed Kicks.

Any great kickers available in the draft this year? We need one bad!!!

This is not a real thread, is it?

While we need a kicker, it is about 15th on our list of actual needs. Good kickers are available on the street every year.

I agree we need a kicker. It is hardly a early round concern. We have 2 picks in the 7th round, I would like to see one of them used to get Sam Ficken from Penn State.

Insert Raiders/Al Davis/Mike Lombardi joke in 3...2...1...

Yes, we need a kicker bad. Cundiff is by far noone I would rely on when the game is on the line. However the assessment of the that being the second biggest need for this team is one I cannot agree with.

Then why doesn't everybody have a good one?

While I think 2nd biggest need is a stretch, it's important. If this team had not collapsed at 7 wins, I could not imagine going to Carolina or Baltimore with the playoffs on the line knowing we might be relying on Cundiff.

It's definitely worth a 6th or 7th round pick to get the one you want rather than waiting to see which ones hit the street.

I think you guys missed what Razor meant. Biggest need and highest priority are different. Aside from QB our K performed the worst of any position grouping. So yes I would agree K is our 2nd biggest need, it just obviously won't be had until later.

I would really like to see us use a pick on a guy who can be hear long term. Since Phil left we've lost games due to our FG% drop. Not a lot but if a 6th round pick can be the difference between 7-9 and 9-7 well I'd say it's not as much of a throw away position as people think. Anyone know who the top 3 K's are in the draft?

According to Walters its:

1. Justin Manton - Louisiana Monroe
2. Kyle Brindza - Notre Dame
3. Michael Hunnicutt - Oklahoma
4. Andre Heidari - USC

Out of that group, I might be inclined to look at Brindza, for the simple reason that he played on grass in colder weather..

Hey, I agree with you. The biggest reason people aren't worked up about getting a kicker in here is because we haven't played in an important game in a long time.

Our biggest need is quality depth everywhere. Score TDs prevent TDs win games. Kicker is for extra point no need for a league leading kicker.

Quick name Seattle's and New England's kicker...tick...tick...tick!!!

New England's kicker had the second highest cap number of all kickers in the NFL in 2014. Seattle's was 13th.

Gostkowski also had the 10th highest cap hit on the Pats. More than any pass rusher.

Steve, I know you stated a need for a kicker. I'm not totally against it, but the question was second biggest need. Browns over the years, not necessarily the last several, always had a top rate kicker. Maybe the priority should point in a new direction.

I do get the need for a quality kicker. I guess I am tired of seeing my team ranked near the top in special teams. Shouldn't special team be a complement?

Oh, no I don't agree that it's our second biggest need. I thought you were piggybacking on some of the earlier comments about it not being worth it to spend dough on a kicker.

I guess I did over do it! We agree!

Steve, kudos on your draft posts a lot of work, thanks, good info!

Just to add fuel to the fire,

Punt Returner/Kick Off Returner.

The Browns were terrible this year in these areas as well.

This is a critique of Pettine, and improvement is needed.

I have no problem whatsoever spending 3 picks on players that will impact the game.

We can add fullback as well.

But is is worth a high draft choice, No. Rounds 5-7.

I'm really not so sure that refusing to address a return man falls on Pettine. We as fans can obviously see the PK and return game was poor, so I'm pretty sure Pettine did too. I believe that may fall upon the people whose job it is to address personnel.

We had better return guys on the roster (or at least guys that could hold onto the ball and not get negative yards) and they didn't return punts.

Tabor might be to blame for putting too much trust in Benjamin, but Pettine could have overruled him.

You mean the no1 and no 5 K in FGM for 2014? How does everyone not know who Gostkowski and Hauchska are?

I wonder if made field goals is related to the success of an offense. After a quick look I don't think it is. Hauschka's percentages were about league average, Gostowski was among the best in the league.

They don't play fantasy football. Or.. Watch football..

Quick name the top two kickers in field goal % this year? Then name New Englands K's for the last 15 years? Then who was that team that's won 4 superbowls in 15 years while winning multiple playoff games off the leg of a complimentary player? You put that percentage on the browns and we're 10-6.

So the point is to discuss the K's available and no one has any interest.

I don't know that to be true at all. I wasn't at the practices to know how the players performed. For me to buy into this I would have to believe that Pettine saw what we all did and refused to play who he felt was the best returners in practice.

I simply don't buy into that.

Quick, name how many games were decided by 3 points or less.

2 plus one that was decided by 4 in a game with 2 punts from a good kickers field goal range.

So while that was in a year that those games were pretty meaningless, in other years they could decide a playoff birth. I know that doesn't mean anything but......

Wait, maybe it does?

So.... we're all in agreement that we're snagging a Kicker at #12, then, right??

Kickers win games. I don't get why the first round isn't littered with kickers who were busts the way it is with QBs.

Well we could go kicker, OT, and/or C. Other than kicker, those are the only positions in the first round they have had any luck at drafting. You could also put CB in there because of Haden, but then Farmer drafted Gilbert.

simple. 1st round drafted kickers don't bust.

This is true. 100% success rate. Let's do it. Although we might want to wait till that FSU kicker is in the draft.

I change my argument.

There have been three kickers drafted in the first round:

Sebastian Janikowski
Steve Little
Charlie Gogolak

Little and Gogolak were horrible. That is only a 33% success rate.

I now don't think we should draft a kicker in the first round.

I think we could probably get whatever kicker we wanted in the 3rd or 4th round and easily add 3-6 points per game. I just don't know which kickers in college are any good because you only hear about kickers when they suck ^^

I would reiterate my point but alas it is worthless. Thanks for reminding me why I didn't post for years. Morons

j/c...

So, it's not directly relevant, but I'm going to use this opportunity to point out the most ridiculous draft era in Browns history.

In 1977, the Browns drafted Tom Skladany of Ohio State in the second round. He was a punter.

In 1978, the Browns drafted Johnny Evans of NC State in the second round. He was also a punter.

In 1981, the Browns drafted Steve Cox of Arkansas in the fifth round. He was, yes, a punter.

In 5 years, the Browns used two second round picks and one 5th round pick on a punter.

The only reason the last 2 events happened is because Skladany held out and never signed with the Browns so he was traded.

Not to lecture here, but I agree that playing whack-a-mole with some posters seems to be where they want to be. Rather see football more often than we do.

Observation for all it is worth: "Critics are legless men who would teach running."

More pigskin, please.