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It might not be the most exciting or chronicled battle of the offseason.

It’s not the kind of thing that moves the needle in print or over the airwaves.

But the battle between New Orleans Saints kickers Dustin Hopkins and Zach Hocker should be one of the more closely contested fights this offseason, and it carries significant importance.

For the first time in a long time, the Saints have the opportunity to lock up a kicker who can be trusted and, if things go well, hold down the job for the foreseeable future. That’s a luxury that Sean Payton has not enjoyed in recent years.

The coach has paraded through a cast of kickers since landing here in 2006, going from John Carney to Olindo Mare to Martin Gramatica to Garrett Hartley to John Kasay back to Hartley and to Shayne Graham. There also were times when the Saints carried two kickers. It has been a revolving door, with Hartley the only player to achieve some degree of security.




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vpheughan

It was Payton who cut Carney and started all of the above. Granted Carney wouldn't have lasted forever but a lot of the fill in's would have never been needed if he weren't cut originally.

jnormand

Yeah Coach P has trust issues with kickers. Kicking is one area I'd like to see some consistency.

ScottF

leg strength seems pretty comparable
just going to come down to who can put it through the uprights more consistently

MatthewT

I am seriously uncertain what Payton is looking for. Over the past many years the Saints have had very nice kickers, and by that I am talking about guys who were exceptionally reliable 40 yards and under. Even the best kickers in the league get shaky on kicks more than 40 yards. When you have one of the top punters in the NFL, you really shouldn't be attempting many long field goals anyway. If the FG is over 45 yards, I say use your punter and pin the other guys deep and play field position.

vpheughan

Place kicker, tight end and any position on defense. Revolving door.

Rugby Saint II

My guess is we still bring in a veteran to camp.

ChrisXVI

This is the only area I've been envious of the Failclowns. Matt Bryant is such a badass. Hope we get this figured out.

Foot Stomper

Moorstead is good. In fact he is way better than good but pinning the other team deep is not one of his better attributes. You can play with the stats here.

2014 NFL Player Punting Stats - National Football League - ESPN

UK_WhoDat

Well that is a plan. Maybe more relevant this year where our defense does it let them get it all back on one set of downs.