Week Five is complete and saw the first significant injury at the snapping position when Zak DeOssie of the Giants suffered a concussion covering a punt. DeOssie could not finish the game and the Giants were forced to use an offensive lineman, Jim Cordle, to handle the remaining snaps in the second half. Cordle had just been activated from the practice squad.
Cordle earned the praise of Head Coach Tom Coughlin for the job he did replacing DeOssie, as the Giants witnessed the importance of having a capable backup snapper in the 2008 season when they beat the Steelers. Greg Warren of the Steelers had been injured, forcing the Steelers to use linebacker James Harrison for snaps. Harrison snapped the ball over the punter’s head which contributed to the loss to the Giants. Despite the injury, DeOssie still had a solo and assisted tackle, giving him five tackles on the season. Warren also added an assisted tackle for the Steelers in the game against the Titans.
Earlier this week, the Vikings extended the contract of snapper Cullen Loeffler, who has handled all of the Vikings snaps since the 2004 season. Loeffler is now under contract through the 2014 season.
The NFL Long Snappers Chart through Week Five is below.
Longsnap.com 