San Diego Chargers Need To Jettison Nick Novak For 2015 Season
Jake Roth-USA TODAY Sports
Amongst other changes the San Diego Chargers need to make this offseason, one that might not make a lot of headlines but could be the most important is to relieve Nick Novak of his job as the Bolts kicker. Novak has been a decent field goal kicker for the Chargers; in the four years he has kicked for them he has never missed a FG less than 30 yards, and until this year he had a good percentage made from 40-49 yards, a distance where most NFL kickers make or break their careers. His career make percentage for the Chargers is at about 86 percent — again, fairly decent. But the problem with Novak isn’t his field goals, it’s his kickoffs.
He has single-handedly been the opposing team’s 12th man on special teams with his atrocious kickoff performance the last two years. Novak was the worst in the NFL in terms of opposing teams starting position after a kickoff and number of touchbacks recorded in 2014.
Touchbacks recorded are arguably one of the biggest “hidden” statistics in the NFL. The ability to force the opposing team to go 80 yards for a touchdown after your team has scored is big; when you consider the number of dangerous returners in the NFL and how quickly momentum can swing with a huge return, a touchback can also give the kicking team a chance at decent field position when back on offense.
Novak and the Chargers were dead last in the NFL with a touchback percentage of a measly 12.82 percent. The next worst team, the New York Jets, were at almost 29 percent. It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to see the correlation between top tier defenses, playoff berths and touchback percentage. The leaders in touchback percentage were the Carolina Panthers, Detroit Lions, Denver Broncos, Baltimore Ravens and the Indianapolis Colts. All of those teams went to the playoffs, and three of them won their divisions. They all were top tier NFL defenses in 2014.
What about opposing teams’ starting field position after a kickoff?
Based on the low number of touchbacks, you could probably guess the Bolts struggled in this statistic as well, and you’d be right. Again, San Diego was dead last in this category, with opposing teams starting on average at about their own 25-yard line. It may not seem like much, but getting a five-yard head start on every drive can add up quickly. And this is just an average. Again, three of the top five teams in this category (Arizona Cardinals, Seattle Seahawks and Colts) went to the playoffs. Is being the best kickoff team a guarantee for the playoffs in the NFL? No, but the percentages say it does make a huge difference.
Novak is 33 and has been a good kicker for the Bolts after they moved on from Nate Kaeding. But they need to find someone who can kick the ball deep and accurately. There are too many prospects out there for them to settle on Novak again in 2015.
Jonathan George is an NFL writer for www.RantSports.com. Follow him on Twitter @jonageorge. “Like” him on Facebook or add him to your network on Google.
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