Q: How do you look at this opportunity?A: Well as far as I know, I mean obviously Lawrence is here and he's the guy here so I'll just take it one week at a time for however long I'm here. I respect Lawrence. I've known him for a while now and we'll just see how it goes.
Q: Do you view this as a competition or do you think they might keep two kickers; one as a kickoff specialist?A: To be honest, I've only been here for 24 hours. I haven't really thought about it. I obviously haven't practiced with the team yet, so we'll kind of see how it goes. I think as of right now I'm just here while he's injured. If I do a good enough job, then it might be a thought in the coach's mind. As of right now, I'm just going to practice.
Q: Do you find it odd that you've been in the league for 4 years and you've never kicked a field goal or PAT in an NFL game?A: I do. Part of that is obviously being with John (Kasay) in Carolina. It's been good for me to be around the league for four years and learn from someone like him. I was with Matt Stover prior to that in Baltimore. So, I've learned a lot. I've kicked field goals in practice and stuff like that. I would like the opportunity in a game but, right time right place.
Q: Have you ever kicked a field goal in a preseason game?A: I have. I did preseason in Baltimore, both years I was there. Did it with the Vikings last year although I never really got a field goal opportunity, just PAT's. And then, I was a full-time kicker in NFL Europe, which is obviously not the real NFL but you know, it was game experience.
Q: With kickoffs from the 35, what would you think your percentage for touchbacks would be?A: Hopefully pretty good. A lot of it has to do with weather and time of the year. I know it gets cold here, assuming I'm here. Obviously, the five yards for me is a big difference. My bad kicks would still land a couple deep and good ones hopefully go to the back of the end zone. So hopefully the percentage will go up. You never know. I've just got to try and make sure I make good contact and the rest will take care of itself.
Q: Would it be realistic to think that you could get touchbacks on 50% of your kickoffs?A: Hopefully. The first year I was in Carolina that was kind of my goal. I know my percentage of end zones reached was over 50%, it was just a matter of whether guys brought it out or not, different returners and different game plans from other teams.
Q: You seem to be very careful to not say that you're competing for this job. Is that because Lawrence is a friend of yours?A: No, I mean Lawrence and I are good friends. Like I said, I honestly don't know what my role here is, whether it's until the end of this week or whether it's the end of preseason or what. I'm literally here just to kick balls in practice and if he gets healthy and it turns into a competition, then that's the way it goes, but as of right now I'm just kind of existing.
Q: Are you thinking maybe I can win this job?A: Sure. You never go into anything without thinking that you can potentially go after something. Again it's a matter of whether the coaches want the competition or if they just want me to help out.
Q: How much strategy has been involved with your kickoffs? Or has it just been boot this thing through the end zone?A: Sure, everything in special teams there's obviously a goal. My goal is obviously to kick it as hard as I possibly can. I've kind of got the title of kickoff specialist. I don't know where that came from. I like to think of it as a driving range pro where I just take out a driver and just hit it as far as I can and it doesn't matter where it goes. I have a tendency to have a certain kick that is my strongest kick which favors the right side obviously. I know the guys over the last four years, they charted out my kicks and I maybe kicked ten balls left. So yeah, I mean I step up there and try to unleash it.
Q: Not having seen you much, are you more of a line drive kicker to get that distance or can you get the hang time if necessary.A: My first goal is hang time. Just because if I don't get it into the end zone, it's giving the guys an opportunity to get down there. If I hit it exactly where I want it, I get both. But I try to err on the side of hang time because you've got to think about the other ten guys on the field running down there as opposed to just me hitting the ball so if I can get both then we're okay. If you hit a line drive five, six yards deep, the guys are so good they'll bring it out anyway. You've got to try and get it five, six deep with hang time. It changes a lot for the coverage.
Q: Were you close to signing here last offseason?A: I was, yeah. It's funny; this is my third trip here. I had a workout here in '06, I believe, after the season. Then last year the Giants were talking to me at the same time Minnesota was and I certainly didn't grow up in Minnesota as you can tell by the accent but I lived there for eight years. That was kind of my second home. It helped a little bit with the decision as one thing but I'm back again, I guess. Third time's a charm, I suppose.
Q: It was also indoors.A: Yeah, it was the Metrodome. Although, halfway through the season it wasn't technically indoors anymore.
Q: When they moved up the kickoff five yards, are you thinking that they're phasing you out?A: You could put it both ways. It kind of takes away from the two kicker role that Carolina had last year. They ended up changing that this year, getting rid of John and myself and bringing in a guy who can do both. It could help my battle just because another five yards is another five yards. Either or, it depends the coaching staff, it really does.
Q: So do you think it helped your value or hurt you?A: I don't know. If I can kick some field goals, then it's certainly going to help. Like I said, it's coaching staff and if they want to carry a guy for kickoffs then obviously it's going to help.
Q: Coach said you were 4 for 4 yesterday in your tryouts. Can you tell us _ them?A: We kicked seven field goals. I went 100% but it was inside so the weather was good. Yeah, I went 7 for 7 then I think we did four kickoffs.
Q: How far was the longest field goal?A: 51 maybe.
Q: Are all your kickoffs reaching in the end zone?A: Yeah I think my worst one was seven deep. It's early in the season and everybody's fresh. So the other guys did very well as well. It was kind of a coin toss. I guess I got it, so I'm here.
