Another change occured at the snapping position, as client Bryan Pittman was released by the Falcons today, along with kicker Jason Elam. Former Jags snapper Joe Zelenka will replace Pittman, who snapped in four games following the season-ending injury to Mike Schneck.
The Falcons have had issues with their field goal and extra point operations this season and also added former Bucs kicker Matt Bryant to replace Elam in an attempt to solve the problems.
Week Twelve is now complete and included some interesting back stories. Chargers veteran snapper Dave Binn played in his 250th consecutive game against the Chiefs. Binn, who was an undrafted free agent from Cal in 2004, did not expect to last long with the Chargers as a backup tight end or H-back, but found his niche as the snapper. To put his longevity in perspective, Binn has played in one-third of the Chargers games in their history. In his 250th game Sunday, Binn added yet another solo tackle.
Jets snapper James Dearth, who played in his 139th consecutive game against the Panthers, was featured in The New York Times Sunday profiling the off-field struggles he has faced this season. His father has cancer and his mother died unexpectedly a few weeks ago, but Dearth has perservered despite these issues and remained a perfectionist on the field. The full article is linked below.
On the tackle front, in addition to Binn’s solo tackle, Ken Amato of the Titans had a solo tackle, while Ryan Pontbriand of the Browns had an assisted tackle. The NFL Long Snappers chart is now updated.
Week Eleven is complete and a number of snappers recorded tackles in punt coverage. Zak DeOssie of the Giants led the way with a solo and assisted tackle, while Mike Leach (Cardinals) and Jon Dorenbos (Eagles) each recorded a solo tackle. Client Brett Goode of the Packers and Dave Binn of the Chargers each had an assisted tackle.
The NFL Long Snappers chart is now updated and can be accessed on the Longsnap.com blog at the NFL Long Snappers page.
For snappers, there is life beyond the NFL, at least this year. The new United Football League has just concluded its inaugural regular season and gave some snappers increased exposure. Meanwhile, the Canadian Football League, which has been around for over 50 years, is in the midst of the playoff rounds. The CFL traditionally uses Canadian snappers since roster spots for import players are limited.
The UFL snappers remained constant during its short season. Nick Sundberg (California), Rigo Morales (Las Vegas), Jared Retkofsky (Las Vegas) and Matt Overton (Florida) each handled all the snaps for their teams. On the CFL side, many veterans snappers continue to fill the rosters. Snappers this year were Dan McCullough (BC), Taylor Inglis (Edmonton), Randy Chevrier (Calgary), Jocelyn Frennete (Saskatchewan), Chris Cvetkovic (Winnipeg), Jordan Matechuk (Hamilton), Steve Schmidt (Toronto) and Martin Bedard (Montreal).
Week Ten of the the NFL season is now complete and did not involve any major snapping incidents. Jon Condo of the Raiders had two assisted tackles and may have recovered a fumbled punt against the Chiefs, but the fumble recovery was credited to a teammate in the official NFL Game Book. Cowboys snapper LP LaDouceur had a fumble recovery on a punt erased on a replay reversal in the loss to the Packers.
Client Justin Snow had a solo and assisted tackle for the Colts, while John Denney (Dolphins), Garrison Sanborn (Bills) and Mike Leach (Cardinals) each had a solo tackle. The NFL Long Snappers chart is now updated with the most current information and punt coverage tackle statistics.
Week Nine was an uneventful one at the snapping position. Client Bryan Pittman had a smooth debut with the Falcons, while Matt Katula of the Ravens was able to snap against the Bengals despite an elbow injury that limited him all week. Joel Dreessen continues to get regular tight end work and snap for the Texans.
Clark Harris of the Bengals and Don Muhlbach of the Lions each recorded solo tackles in punt coverage. The NFL Long Snappers chart is now updated and available at the NFL Long Snappers page.
ESPN The Magazine ran a small story in the latest issue concerning the use of fakes, noting that punters have run and thrown for more fakes than in the last three seasons combined. Heading into Week Nine, punters have run for 50 yards and one touchdown on four carries and thrown for 67 yards, with one touchdown and one interception.
Punter Brian Moorman of the Bills was interviewed for the story, as he has two career touchdown passes and 54 rushing yards. Moorman described that the team will call a fake based on certain tendencies shown by the opposition, such as overloading guys to one side.
Len Pasquarelli of ESPN.com recently wrote about what he called the “golden age” of punting, with both gross and net punting averages at all-time highs. Pasquarelli noted how last weekend’s Colts-49ers game turned on the punting efforts of Colts’ rookie Pat McAfee and the benefit the 49ers get from punter Andy Lee. Currently, 14 punters have gross averages of 45 yards of more and nine have net averages of 40 yards or more.
However, Aaron Schatz of Football Outsiders has questioned whether the early strong numbers might be attributable to good weather and that a more relevant analysis of punting figures will be after the season ends.
Client Bryan Pittman will snap for the Atlanta Falcons after Mike Schneck was placed on injured reserve with a rib injury, ending his season. Pittman last snapped in the regular season last year with the Texans and was slated to be the Seahawks’ snapper this season before suffering a finger injury just prior to training camp. Pittman had a workout Wednesday with the Falcons, along with other veteran snappers Nate Hodel and Joe Zelenka.
Week Eight is complete and was a relatively uneventful one for the snapping position. Ryan Neill performed well as the new Rams’ snapper and was part of a succesful fake punt for a touchdown. Texans’ snapper Joel Dreessen will likely see his tight end workload increase now, as starting tight end Owen Daniels is injured and out for the season.
Dolphins’ snapper John Denney and Mike Schneck of the Falcons each recorded a solo tackle this week, while client Brett Goode (Packers) and Brian Jennings (49ers) each had an assisted tackle. The NFL Long Snappers chart is now updated.
