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Meet a great Cowboy you might not think about
10:56 PM CDT on Wednesday, August 4, 2010
Column by TODD ARCHER / The Dallas Morning News | tarcher@dallasnews.com
SAN ANTONIO – Sometimes you don't know greatness even when it's right in front of you.
Mat McBriar might have had the best season of any Cowboy last season. True, he didn't make the Pro Bowl. True, he only has to do one thing during a game and only a few times at that. And there's probably some of that, "He's only a punter" thing in there, too.
But McBriar's statistics are impressive if you dig deeper than the traditional gross average that measures a punter. He averaged 45.1 yards per punt, which would only be his third-best full season since joining the Cowboys in 2004. He had a 39.9-yard net, which was the best of his career and the third-best in franchise history.
He also dropped 38 of his 72 punts inside the opponents' 20-yard line. Only one other punter in team history had more than 30 in a season (Toby Gowin, 31 in 1998). It was also the sixth-highest total in NFL history.
But it's punts inside the 20 that separates McBriar.
McBriar placed 52.8 percent of his punts inside the 20. According to STATS Inc., only one other punter has had more than half of his punts inside the 20 (San Diego's Mike Scifres in 2006 – 50.7 percent) since 1976. Arizona's Ben Graham (42) and Kansas City's Dustin Colquitt (41) had more punts inside the 20, but they punted 86 and 96 times.
Take away McBriar's numbers, and the league average was 33.6 percent last season. McBriar's previous best was 39.3 percent in 2006 (22 of 56)
"Last year was definitely my best year," McBriar said.
But he hardly remembers the good punts. It's the bad ones – a couple against Kansas City, one each against Oakland and Philadelphia and the 59-yarder against the Giants – that stick out most.
Especially the one against the Giants because it was returned 79 yards for a touchdown by Domenik Hixon. He felt a gust of wind off his right shoulder before the punt and altered his line, which sent the ball closer to the middle of the field. Never mind that a handful of Cowboys were in position to corral Hixon before he got started, McBriar takes the blame.
"It was a bad spot for the guys," McBriar said.
When McBriar joined the Cowboys, he would awe his teammates with his leg strength, like in 2006 when he had a 75-yarder against Houston, but he has since become more enamored with placement.
"He goes a great job with the directional stuff we ask him to do and hang the ball a little more," special teams coach Joe DeCamillis said.
There's a technique to McBriar's job, which is why he spends so much practice time catching snaps to perfect his footwork and drops. He also points to balance as a key component.
"The first couple of years, I hit these monster punts, but I was also having these rather bad shanks," McBriar said. "I think staying balanced and within myself helps. It's like a golf swing in a way."
The more effective McBriar can be, the more effective the defense can be. Opponents had an average starting position at their 26 on all drives against the Cowboys in 2009.
"I hope to punt better," McBriar said. "I'd like to think that wasn't my best year and now I'm going to go down. I don't want to get on that slope just yet."
10:56 PM CDT on Wednesday, August 4, 2010
Column by TODD ARCHER / The Dallas Morning News | tarcher@dallasnews.com
SAN ANTONIO – Sometimes you don't know greatness even when it's right in front of you.
Mat McBriar might have had the best season of any Cowboy last season. True, he didn't make the Pro Bowl. True, he only has to do one thing during a game and only a few times at that. And there's probably some of that, "He's only a punter" thing in there, too.
But McBriar's statistics are impressive if you dig deeper than the traditional gross average that measures a punter. He averaged 45.1 yards per punt, which would only be his third-best full season since joining the Cowboys in 2004. He had a 39.9-yard net, which was the best of his career and the third-best in franchise history.
He also dropped 38 of his 72 punts inside the opponents' 20-yard line. Only one other punter in team history had more than 30 in a season (Toby Gowin, 31 in 1998). It was also the sixth-highest total in NFL history.
But it's punts inside the 20 that separates McBriar.
McBriar placed 52.8 percent of his punts inside the 20. According to STATS Inc., only one other punter has had more than half of his punts inside the 20 (San Diego's Mike Scifres in 2006 – 50.7 percent) since 1976. Arizona's Ben Graham (42) and Kansas City's Dustin Colquitt (41) had more punts inside the 20, but they punted 86 and 96 times.
Take away McBriar's numbers, and the league average was 33.6 percent last season. McBriar's previous best was 39.3 percent in 2006 (22 of 56)
"Last year was definitely my best year," McBriar said.
But he hardly remembers the good punts. It's the bad ones – a couple against Kansas City, one each against Oakland and Philadelphia and the 59-yarder against the Giants – that stick out most.
Especially the one against the Giants because it was returned 79 yards for a touchdown by Domenik Hixon. He felt a gust of wind off his right shoulder before the punt and altered his line, which sent the ball closer to the middle of the field. Never mind that a handful of Cowboys were in position to corral Hixon before he got started, McBriar takes the blame.
"It was a bad spot for the guys," McBriar said.
When McBriar joined the Cowboys, he would awe his teammates with his leg strength, like in 2006 when he had a 75-yarder against Houston, but he has since become more enamored with placement.
"He goes a great job with the directional stuff we ask him to do and hang the ball a little more," special teams coach Joe DeCamillis said.
There's a technique to McBriar's job, which is why he spends so much practice time catching snaps to perfect his footwork and drops. He also points to balance as a key component.
"The first couple of years, I hit these monster punts, but I was also having these rather bad shanks," McBriar said. "I think staying balanced and within myself helps. It's like a golf swing in a way."
The more effective McBriar can be, the more effective the defense can be. Opponents had an average starting position at their 26 on all drives against the Cowboys in 2009.
"I hope to punt better," McBriar said. "I'd like to think that wasn't my best year and now I'm going to go down. I don't want to get on that slope just yet."