Professional Football Researchers Association Forum

Looks like no one at these positions is in. Best eligible options might be:

PK: Jim Bakken, Garo Yepremian, Mark Moseley, Fred Cox.

P: Tommy Davis, Jerrel Wilson, Horace Gillom, Don Chandler.

Comments welcome.

Also maybe add Matt Bahr for K? Lord knows kicking in Cleveland, Foxboro, and the old Meadowlands (where the winds REALLY swirled unlike Metlife Stadium) weren't easy. But for his era he was pretty steady, reliable and played forever.

Fred Cox...lean no. Always seemed kind of middling to me. Didn't really have a strong leg.

Eddie Murray perhaps for HOVG?

How incredible is it that between 1980 and 2012, 32 years, the Lions basically had just two kickers. (2012 Dave Rayner kicked for them 1/2 a season while Hanson was hurt, and I vaguely remember Bob Thomas kicking for the Lions back in the 80s for a hot second. Not counting whatever scab kicker they had) but Murray/Hanson were the mainstays.

I would heartily support Jim Bakken and Jerrel Wilson.

Especially Jerrel Wilson.
I remember Wilson as the best punter while I was growing up. It has since been proven to me that my memory is faulty and Ray Guy was better (I grudgingly admit) but I well remember Jerrel's booming kicks.

http://www.pro-football-reference.com/p ... lsJe20.htm

http://www.pro-football-reference.com/p ... kkJi20.htm

Kind of have to support Mark Mosely, too.
The MVP makes him unique.

http://www.pro-football-reference.com/p ... lmar01.htm

And Tommy Davis was a double threat as the Niners Kicker and Punter.

http://www.pro-football-reference.com/p ... viTo20.htm

Dang... all the guys mentioned are... Very Good.
It's not so much a case of "Are these guys deserving?" as it is in what order do the perhaps dozens of "very good" players get recognized.

Chase Stuart did a ranking of PK adjusted for era by FG pct. over at the Football Perspective site going back to 1960 (which is likely why Lou Groza ranks lower than these folks). The leaders he came up with are:

Nick Lowrey
Morton Andersen
Jan Stenerud
Jason Hansen
Gary Anderson
Jim Bakken
Eddie Murray
Garo Yepremian
Mark Moseley
John Kasay
Fred Cox

I listed the four best PK here that are currently eligible for the HOVG. Andersen and Stenerud are in the PFHoF.

JuggernautJ wrote:I would heartily support Jim Bakken and Jerrel Wilson.

Especially Jerrel Wilson.
I remember Wilson as the best punter while I was growing up. It has since been proven to me that my memory is faulty and Ray Guy was better (I grudgingly admit) but I well remember Jerrel's booming kicks.

http://www.pro-football-reference.com/p ... lsJe20.htm

http://www.pro-football-reference.com/p ... kkJi20.htm

Wilson had a lot blocked

JohnTurney wrote:

JuggernautJ wrote:I would heartily support Jim Bakken and Jerrel Wilson.

Especially Jerrel Wilson.
I remember Wilson as the best punter while I was growing up. It has since been proven to me that my memory is faulty and Ray Guy was better (I grudgingly admit) but I well remember Jerrel's booming kicks.

http://www.pro-football-reference.com/p ... lsJe20.htm

http://www.pro-football-reference.com/p ... kkJi20.htm

Wilson had a lot blocked

That's what everyone here taught me (yourself included).
And that's what the stats show.

Funny though, my ten year old self doesn't seem to remember it that way....

Funny thing about Bakken, he only made one 50 yarder in his entire 17 year career. I know field goals of that length from 62-78 were not a commonplace occurrence...but only one? It seems like after 1970 the Cardinals just outright stopped attempting field goals of that length as Bakken was on an 0-15 50 and over stretch.

But Bakken was the first with 7 field goals in one NFL game and he
held that record by himself for 22 years.