Seahawks to Sign K Ryan Longwell

[LawlessHawk]

So I guess everyone missed the kickoff Ryan put five yards deep in the endzone?

I guess I must have. Just remember that really bad squib and them showing him practicing into the net on the sideline... he's got such a stong leg I'd think he could get it done when needed.

 

[acbass]

On Madden, Ryan has a higher kicker rating than Steven, and he is usually set as the default kick off guy... Haha, not that it matters. Ryan Succop, the Chiefs' kicker I believe, did both duties at South Carolina. In fact, most Gamecock fans, believed he was a better punter. I have always wondered why they couldn't do them both. I think Longwell will be fine. The game is in a dome, so that makes things a little easier. I'm hoping Hauschka gets back if we move on. Go Hawks!

 

[HansGruber]

Haushka to me, can't kick 50 yarders when you need him to.

How is longwell in that range? I don't know, honestly.

He's been pretty solid if you look at his stats on NFL.com. Kicking FGs, he completed 26 of 28 in 2009 (92.9%), and 17 of 18 in 2010 (94.9%), but fell to 22 of 28 in 2011 (78.6%). Thing that scares me most is that he hasn't played all season. To answer your question, most Viking fans are saying he was no good past low 50's, but 99% of kickers aren't (and especially not Haushka) so no big loss there.

That's pretty much what Vikings fans are saying online. He was a solid kicker for them for his whole career but had a rough 2011 and missed a bunch of easy kicks apparently. They all like him though, say he was an awesome guy. He's also from Seattle. Not sure how that really matters, but meh... he's a kicker.

Considering the quality of our special teams this year, I think our coaches must know what they're doing and they honestly saw Longwell as the best alternative, so... it is what it is I guess. Let's hope the game doesn't come down to a 55 yard FG attempt.

Honestly though, DE is probably going to have a much bigger impact, positive or negative.

 

[Bipolar]

Longwell is uber reliable and it's a damn shame he was on the market to begin with.

can't possibly go wrong with the 7-year Packer veteran. Thanks, JS!

 

[Rat]

I thought his leg strength was embarrassing during his last season in Minnesota, but maybe I'm remembering it worse than it was.

Hopefully we won't need him. He's pretty reliable from shorter distances if we do need him though.

 

[HansGruber]

I thought his leg strength was embarrassing during his last season in Minnesota, but maybe I'm remembering it worse than it was.

Hopefully we won't need him. He's pretty reliable from shorter distances if we do need him though.

Yeah, Viking fans are saying that online. Apparently, Longwell has never been good at 50+:

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/1175 ... lair-walsh

But I'm not sure that's really a big deal. Unlike the 2011 Vikings, the Seahawks are able to consistently move the ball. Hauschka has also not been reliable at all at 50 yards or higher. In fact, he's got less-than-average distance but better-than-average accuracy. And we've been okay with that all season. I only remember one time where Hauschka's limitations really hurt us.

Generally, if the Seahawks can move the ball into the opponent's side of the field, we're able to get into the Red Zone. I'm interested what the stats would be on that. All I know is, Russell Wilson has been able to make magic happen and get this team within short kicking distance all season, and I don't see that changing now. Especially against a weak run defense like Atlanta's.

 

[volsunghawk]

This could actually be an improvement for us.

Hauschka has not been very clutch, he's been in the mid-80 percentile his whole career. Longwell has consistently been in the 90's. Hauschka's longest FG was 52 yards. But generally speaking, he's no good at 50 or more yards.

Here's the thing. That's not true.

Longwell's career average on FGs is 83.2%.

He was at 90+% only 2 seasons, 2009 and 2010.

Hauschka's career average is 82.3%, just one point behind Longwell. And he's at 88.9% this season.

Kickers generally hover around the 80-85% range, regardless of how "good" or "clutch" we think they are. Adam Vinatieri, for example, gets so much credit for being clutch, but in the SB against the Panthers where he had a "game winning FG," he missed two prior to that. The Pats wouldn't have needed those late FG heroics if Vinatieri hadn't missed twice in the first place.

In the end, Longwell's only value to us is if Hauschka can't go. This isn't a long-term deal, nor is it a marked improvement. It's an improvement over a hobbled kicker, but that's about it.

 

[MrCarey]

Why the hell didn't the Niners pick up Longwell over Cundiff?!

 

[BlueThunder]

I approve of this signing. Have always liked Longwell... Can he play DE too?

 

[drdiags]

With these signings the Seahawks went from one of the youngest to one of the oldest teams in less than a day.

 

[NYCoug]

It would be interesting if the Hawks and Packers play in the NFC title game. Longwell has a ton of experience kicking in Lambeau and might be better suited tor the task than Hauschka would have. Who knows? For now, he should be fine in the dome.