Has there been any indication from Medlock that he plans to remain in Hamilton or is he waiting out for another try at the NFL. With Burke Dales going to the Eskimos what our are options?
Tcmik
Not much has been said about Medlock, but his absence would spell doom imo.
I'd have felt a whole lot better about the situation if we could have re-signed Wilbur, but that ship has sailed.
Here's hoping the improvements to the team and the signing of his favourite holder sways Medlock to stay with Hamilton.
That is a very good point regarding the signing of Kevin Eiben. All Cat fans hope Medlock returns. :thup:
Pat Lynch(the old guy)
The problem with Medlock hes always ready to bolt to the NFL and could be like that for years. We would never have got or hands on him if it were different. I don't know how long Obie will put up with this. The guys is a great kicker you have to give him that.
I don't think that's true. I think if he gets the right offer he is willing to stay here. They need to give him the $$ he wants/deserves.
If he signs a contract he can't "bolt" every year as you say. Medlock probably sees that the Giants kicker Lawrence Tynes got a name for himself in the CFL and then turned out to be a succesful, high priced kicker in the NFL. I understand why he wants to go.
I agree with you I understand why he wants to go and your right he can't leave under contract but the problem is he only signs a one year contract after hes sure there's no interest from the NFL which leave you wondering each year if you have a kicker or not for the coming season.
How many spots are open in the nfl.
Most teams are set at kicker, so how many openings are out there for him?
He had a try out for the Jets, the Chiefs have already been there and the Lions also.
He was a 5th round 2007 draft in the NFL for the Chiefs and hasn't made it yet.
He is a great CFL kicker but is left footed which turns your holder around, so if an NFL team signs Medlock they may need a new holder to go with him.
All I am saying is he is somewhat of a gamble for an NFL team and NFL teams do not like to have to hope if their placekicker will suceed.
I feel that Medlock will be back on the Cats roster soon and will sign a long term contract.
Obie will get it done!
To add to my post.
[url=http://articles.latimes.com/2011/aug/22/sports/la-sp-nfl-kickers-20110823]http://articles.latimes.com/2011/aug/22 ... s-20110823[/url][b]
"We don't need to know a playbook, so patience is thin," former NFL kicker Michael Husted said. "If a guy misses a couple of kicks, teams don't hesitate to make a change."
Justin Medlock knows that all too well. The former UCLA kicker was a fifth-round pick of Kansas City in 2007, had a so-so rookie training camp and was released after missing one of two field-goal attempts in Week 1. That was the first stop in an NFL/Canadian Football League odyssey with stops with the St. Louis Rams, Toronto Argonauts (twice), Washington Redskins, Detroit Lions, Omaha Nighthawks (of the United Football League), Edmonton Eskimos and Hamilton Tiger-Cats.
"I definitely think I can kick in the NFL," said Medlock, who has built a more secure but lower-profile kicking career north of the border. "But that's a league where they want you to perform now, and not in two months. They don't have time to, say, work in a new holder trying to get adapted to a lefty. If they think you're a good kicker and your holder can't hold, they'll cut you."
In order to consistently put a ball between the uprights, Medlock said, you have to be in the right place between the ears. He added that most kickers have the physical ability to make all sorts of kicks and therefore success in the pros is "99% mental and 1% mental" — meaning if you think you're going to miss, you already have.
Like Akers, Medlock is a left-footed kicker and says those are becoming rarer around the NFL in part because it's increasingly difficult to find good holders for them. With virtually every team, it's the punter who does the holding, as opposed to years ago, when it was just as often the backup quarterback.
Holding for a kicker is difficult enough, let alone having to flop from the right to left side depending on the player's kicking foot, and spinning the ball in different directions to make sure the laces are facing out. A proper snap-hold-kick operation takes fewer than two seconds and requires surgical precision. So when punters switch teams, as they do every year, the ripple effect can be dramatic.[/b]
[b]With virtually every team, it's the punter who does the holding, as opposed to years ago, when it was just as often the backup quarterback.[/b]I wonder why that is? I'm guessing the punter would typically be the back-up kicker, meaning if your kicker goes down during a game, suddenly you need to replace both the kicker and the holder.
It's usually because the punter and kicker have lots of time to practice together by themselves.
I guess way back, back up QBs were players who could take a snap, I dunno.
Then in the 80s we saw a lot of receivers do the holding. Steve Largent held FGs for years for the Seahawks. Weston Dressler is the holder for the Riders. Darren Flutie used to hold for Passaglia. I guess because they have good hands.
But also, an FG kicker likes to have the same holder for as long as possible, so a guy like Dressler they feel will be with the team a long time so he holds. Same with uitor for Ridgway back in the 80s. Suitor was a long time vet not going anywhere.
It's so that during practise the two kickers and the long snapper can all work together without having to take an offensive or defensive player away from their drills, scrimmage, etc.
Or at least that's the only reason I can come up with.
And sometimes it's a receiver, like Darren Flutie.
Then there was Joe Zuger.... he was the best punter in his day, and also a starting QB. So the Ticats had a play in their book that no one else had... the quick kick, which Joe used to great effect on occasion.
Good information, thank you, Grover.
I think once Justin has a look around and is satisfied that his opportunities down south are spent, he will be back in Hamilton. The way this team is shaping up, and two free agent signings (Fantuz and Eiben) have already declared that this team is ready for a cup run, may be a decider for Mr. Medlock.
If anyone can get our kicker back in the fold it's Obie.
I'm sure when the moment comes we will get another one of those riddling tweets from Bob.
As one who looks at the downside of nearly every situation, (according to my wife) I see nothing but
this acquisition of Andy Fantuz as being great news. I have never been one to talk "Grey Cup" at this
time of year, but I'm getting very close to doing so, not just because of Andy's signing but also due to
the way the team is currently shaping up.
We continue to need a couple of big linemen and defensive backs. If this happens, it will be difficult
to contain joy.
Zuger was a great punter and a pretty fair QB too. Reminded me of this Youtube clip of Zuger in action during a Grey Cup game. It's amazing how quickly they got the ball away back then...the quick snap and the quick pass were difficult to defend. It's odd that few teams use the quick snap much anymore.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aX4KyDlz8jwEiben held for Prefontaine in Toronto. Another left footed kicker.
I like the Labatt 50 commercial featuring the late Billy Van at the 2:45 mark of the video!
Different style of punting then. The idea was just to get the ball as far down the field as possible. Zuger regularly unleased 50-65 yarders with the bounce. Today the idea is to get height on the ball in order to limit possible returns. Personally, I thought the former was more fun.
I have to admit I didn't recognize him. Didn't even realize he was a musician; most of my memories of him are from his comedic roles on Canadian TV (including game shows) and on the Sonny & Cher Show. But now that I think about it, was he in the backup band on that show? I remember him doing a bit of backup vocals, but don't remember if he played guitar there or not.
I watched the entire game on YouTube last year (copyright? What copyright?), including the pre-game show (chalkboard and all), the ads (VERY Canadian), and the half-time show (again, VERY Canadian). The way they shut down George Reed was amazing. If I'm not mistaken, there were three quick kicks in the game. And that quick snap was very effective; interesting that it seems to have disappeared from the game. Great to see all those favourite players from my youth again. In "living black & white".
Back (almost) on topic, who was Coffey's holder? Was it Zuger of Henley? Something tells me it was one of those two, but without watching the entire game again, I can't be sure.