K Mike Nugent
August 26, 2017
Q: Did it feel good when you hit the 54-yard field goal?
A: Yeah, it came off my foot really well. I just did a good job of keeping my head down. I got to give it to the guys up front, the blocking is always great here. I’ve noticed that every day. My job is a lot easier when I get snaps and holds like I do with these two guys. So, it is nice going up to a field goal thinking everything else is going to be great. I just have to make sure to do my job.
Q: The next kickoff after the 54-yarder went out of the end zone, were you pumped up after making that one?
A: I think I was honestly just more under control. I think the first two I hit well, but not as good as I wanted to and I wasn’t ecstatic about the placement on both of them and I just realized I have to be more under control and I need that to be on the first kickoff and not the third one.
Q: You basically have no control of when you are going to get out there, is getting two 50 yarders, the best-case scenario for you?
A: Yeah, especially in the preseason when you want to try to get as much exposure as possible. You don’t know what is going to happen when the time comes when the roster has to go down so it’s good to be able to put some good kicks on film and try to be the same player every day.
Q: What is your take on how this is going down? Neither one of you guys have missed a kick this preseason.
A: I can’t really speak for Aldrick [Rosas] but it has been a lot of fun I think. I talked to him the first day and it was like, when you work out, you like to be with someone else, when you run you like to be with someone else because you have somebody to compare yourself to. There are things that he does that I think to myself, ‘he is doing that well, I got to do a better job of it’, so I think we are both learning a lot from each other. At the end of the day, we only won by a point tonight, but its good we had all the points put on the board for our opportunities.
Q: Do you think it is important given your age that you can still make those long kicks?
A: I think so. Whether you are Adam Vinatieri or a rookie, that is what the preseason is for. You get a feel for everything. We talked a little bit this week about how the season can be a rollercoaster and hopefully as a kicker you can be the same player every day and make that pretty steady and not so much the ups and downs.
Q: Do you think your long-distance kicking might have been a question they might have had?
A: I wouldn’t say strength-wise. That is the great thing and the tough thing about being a kicker. Everything is pretty black and white. It’s either a make or a miss. There is no grey area. It is all very objective so, I am not ecstatic about my numbers over 50 so, I think it is something that I am definitely going to have to prove not only in practice, not only in preseason, but in the regular season as well. I have gotten myself in certain situation where I try to kick it harder, but it is like, ‘hit the same ball’, that is what I was taught from day one and I think I did a good job of that tonight and I just have to do that when the next time comes.
Q: And you hit two of them so that has to make you feel good about what they think of you.
A: Yeah, it does. It’s one of those things where you’re lucky if you hit a 22 yarder or a 52 yarder so, whenever it is your turn, just make sure you do your job.
Q: Did you expect this competition to be so even?
A: I really didn’t know how it would play out. I really didn’t know because I have had preseasons before where I have been the only guy and I have attempted four field goals in four games and I have had others where I have attempted 12 or 14 so, I think one great thing is we are seeing a lot of situations. Getting some extra points in there tonight. I don’t know how we are doing field goal wise, but I obviously know how accurate we have been with how many we’ve had. It’s good we’ve seen a lot of situations. That’s one thing that is great about the preseason and hopefully you get to the regular season and think, ‘well we saw this two weeks ago.’
Q: It seems like it is going to come down to the wire.
A: It could. I can’t speak for Aldrick, but I think both of us are doing a great job of coming in and doing our job when it is our turn and we have coaches that take great care of our bodies. I am not kicking a million balls a day, every day. So, I think that really plays a part in training camp especially when you are 35 years old. This organization has been great about kicking and things like that and making sure we are at our best when the time comes.
