It’s Game Day, Who’s Your Kicker?

February 2, 2022

In the U.S. National Football League, January is known as the playoff month, leading up to the all-important Super Bowl, scheduled this year for February 13^th. With 53 players allowed on each team roster, most of the players have backups. The kicker is the only unique role on the team. Kickers come out on the field to make the extra point after a touchdown, and to make field goals.

Many games are won or lost by the accuracy of kickers. The Cincinnati Bengal’s kicker Evan McPherson’s 52-yard field goal cinched their 19-16 win over the Tennessee Titans on January 22^nd. This advanced the Bengals to the American Football Conference championship game. The following weekend, McPherson’s 33-yard field goal in overtime secured the 27-24 win over the Kansas City Chiefs, and the Bengals now advance to the Super Bowl. As a rookie he is also the first player in NFL history to make more than four field goals in multiple games in a single postseason.⁽¹⁾

The Baltimore Ravens’ kicker Justin Tucker is the highest paid,⁽²⁾and most accurate at 91.1%. He also holds the record for the longest field goal ever at 66 yards ⁽³⁾. He says it takes 1.3 seconds from the snap until he makes contact with the ball; requiring precision and skill.⁽⁴⁾

The Carolina Panthers’ kicker Zane Gonzalez is key to their success and his scoring record is 20 of 22 field goals. He injured himself in warmups before their December 19th game, and with no backup, they made no attempt at field goals and ultimately lost to the Buffalo Bills.⁽⁵⁾

A recent news report on 60 Minutes, Inside the Mind of an NFL Kicker⁽⁴⁾ profiling the role of kickers, indicated that they score more than a third of the points for their teams, yet they’re often unappreciated.

Only two are in the NFL Hall of Fame.
Teams seldom have backup kickers.
They don’t have to practice as hard as their teammates.
They don’t have to endure the physical contact of hitting or getting hit.
Their performance feedback is immediate, as the ball either goes through the goal posts, or it doesn’t.
Their role is also high pressure as the team is typically in a pinch needing those points to win.

Highly Skilled Individual Contributors

Now admittedly I’m not a huge football fan, but as I learned more about the role of the kicker, it intrigued me. They wear special shoes, use a uniquely prepared football, and have a few secret tricks of the trade. They use different muscles and physical tactics than their teammates. And their mental game is just as crucial as their physical game. They can’t buckle under pressure.

As leaders, when you look at your team, you typically recognize their various strengths. You know the skill sets needed to accomplish your objectives. You hire and train for these capabilities. And you tend to invest in your most valuable players (like the quarterback) in the lead role. But what’s the high-pressure individual contributor role that only gets a little bit of visibility?

They have a specific expertise that isn’t easily learned by anyone else.
They “stay ready” but only “play their role” for a relatively brief period of time.
They don’t appear to work hard, even though they’re always available.
They’re not always in the huddle when plans are developed.

Yet playing their role well can be the difference between success and failure for the entire group.

Investing for Success

The question for leaders is,

Do you have a kicker role on your team, or should you have one?

This is a unique skill set or strategy that will significantly improve your business and help you to achieve your goals. Sometimes in the push to reduce staffing related costs, a strategic resource whose value is underappreciated, is let go from the team. Or leaders fail to recognize the potential of someone with a skill set that doesn’t fit the norm, or whose approach isn’t politically correct. When this person or their skill set doesn’t look like the rest of the organization, you may not know how to best leverage it.

If you’re not sure whether you have or need a kicker, start by evaluating the performance of your team and identify areas where performance falls short. Are there data gaps, missing expertise, response time lags, or persistent problems that no one seems to be able to solve? What are your critical success factors and how are you addressing them?

As you identify your kicker, recognize that this person will likely not have the same credentials as the rest of the team. And initially may not have the same level of credibility. They also may not deeply understand the intricacies of the business or industry, but may be knowledgeable, insightful and add value. For example:

The person may not need to be present in every meeting.
The person may need specialized training and development, different from everyone else.
This person might be a 12-year-old whiz kid, or an 80-year-old wizard.
The person might have a physical or intellectual disability.
The person may not mix well with the team but may shine as an individual contributor.
The person might be a full-time employee, a consultant, or a part-time contractor.

The bottom line is, are they making a game changing difference in your results so that you’re a winning team? The Super Bowl is almost here. Who’s your kicker?

⁽¹⁾https://twitter.com/NFLResearch/status/1485048182635565057?s=20

⁽²⁾https://en.as.com/en/2021/11/04/nfl/1636021145_859570.html

⁽³⁾https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Justin_Tucker

⁽⁴⁾Inside the mind of an NFL kicker – 60 Minutes – CBS News

⁽⁵⁾Panthers hold sad kicker tryouts after Zane Gonzalez is injured before game (nypost.com)

results success talent team members