The Kicker: Unsung Heroes of American Football by Chua Kee Peow

There are probably only a small handful of American Football fans in Singapore but I doubt many would disagree that the kickers are the least celebrated player on the rosters.

In Super Bowl XXXVI, the New England Patriots had Adam Vinatieri to thank for bringing them the limelight. With seconds to go in the final quarter of the game and the score tied at 17, Vinatieri came onto the field and coolly stroked the ball past the two uprights for a game winning field goal from all of 48 yards.

That was just one of the rare jittery moments that kickers have to endure in American football games. Most of the time, they are more involved in kicking for the point after touchdowns (i.e. when the quarterbacks and running backs have all the glory of securing 6 points for the team) or kicking the game off. Frankly speaking, these duties are some of the most unglamorous and least-involved aspects of the game. That is why kickers are not very well acknowledged for their contributions to the team.

Kickers have always epitomized the Chinese saying. “Soldiers are prepared for thousands of days, but only used in one”. They train as hard as anyone on the team roster and during the game, you can always catch them kicking the ball into miniature goals with nets along the sidelines. Their importance is only highlighted on occasions such as the last Super Bowl when they are called upon to kick a deciding goal for the team.

The amount of mental stress that has been placed on kickers is quite immense too. Imagine the whole arena, filled with thousands of people, your coach, team and your family, friends and fans watching you on television and holding their breath while the quarterback calls out for the snap. As the ball is set on the ground prior to the approach run, the tension and mental strength needed to focus on the job of kicking the accurate field goal must be immensely high. These kickers must have nerves of steel!

So, next time when you are catching Monday Night football, do keep a lookout for the unsung hero – the kicker. You might just catch him in his moment of glory.

*For more information on Super Bowl XXXVI, please visit www.superbowl.com and visit www.nfl.com for more details about American football.

Note: This article was published on Aspire website in 2002.

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