did jan stenerud kick barefoot
Hes one of just five kickers with a cumulative accuracy above 80% from 1980 to 1983, and he attempted by far the most kicks out of anyone on the list. Jan Stenerud was born in Fetsund, in the county of Akershus, Norway. Jokingly, he tried anothersoccer-styleoff his instep. Meanwhile, back in Kansas City, the Chiefs had drafted Justin Medlock in the fifth round. Jan Stenerud on the Kansas City bench on Jan. 1, 1976. Jan Stenerud has had two reoccurring dreams during his 70 years. He kicked with his toe like [50 Greatest Vikings member] Fred Cox," Stenerud explained. At Montana State I had a coach, I mentioned him earlier, but I need to recognize him more. I guess he liked what he saw, Jan said of his audition for Sweeney on the eve of the season finale. He never changed. It made a difference.". Yes, he is aware who the Chiefs are playing on Christmas Eve in the 2017 season. "Anytime we get to midfield we're a threat to score three points. He told Sweeney, Youve got to take a look at this Norwegian skier out there. With 1,699 points, he ranked behind only the fabled George Blanda in all-time scoring at the time of his retirement. So in 2009, the Chiefs took Ryan Succop with the last pick of the draft. He is the first pure placekicker to be inducted in the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Jan Stenerud was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1991. To make the sea change clear, compare those figures to the career numbers of Jan Stenerud, who remains the only player enshrined in the Hall of Fame solely for his placekicking abilities.. I didn't know the first thing about a soccer-style kicker. "Did you notice that the charts showed I was missing mostly from the right hash mark? He is the only player to get All-Prohonors in three decades -- the '60s, the '70s and the '80s. On our way there he had us stop off at Indiana State University. There were many factors in the 27-24 defeat in the last game at Municipal Stadium: The Chiefs committed four turnovers to the Dolphins two, and the defense couldnt keep Miami out of the end zone in the final minutes after taking a 24-17 lead. As the Montana State Bobcats practiced for their final home football game in 1964, Jan Stenerud was going through his own fall routine: conditioning his legs for the upcoming ski season by running the stadiums steps. He finished the season without missing a single PAT, and made 90.5 percent of his field-goal attempts. Late in my career, in 1980 when everybody else in the league thought I was washed up, Bart Starr, the great player and then the coach for the Green Bay Packers, took a chance on me, and that paved the way for six more years for me in the league. Its a perfect example of why you should never try and stash a good kicker on your NFL practice squad. Down went the ball. One autumn afternoon, my junior year in 1964, I did something that would dramatically change my life forever:I attempted to kick a football a couple of times. I can do this, he told the Journal-Constitution. . Now how in the hell was I going to help him if he ever got in a slump if I didn't know what he was doing? The first Norwegian NFL player, he began his career in the AFL after being selected by the Chiefs during the 1966 draft and joined the NFL following the AFLNFL merger. He went on to help us become one of the winningest teams in the National Football League with two divisional championships, three playoffs and a Super Bowl win over the Minnesota Vikings in Super Bowl IV. Reaching back with his right leg, Stenerud slammed the football so hard with the ball of his right foot that it sounded like two horses colliding. Stenerud, who made field goals of 50 yards or more in the pros, normally studied the goal posts before stepping into the ball - saying they looked "narrower" the farther you stood from them. Once they saw Stenerud kick, all doubts were erased. He attended Montana State University on a ski jumping scholarship. If you are ready for it and some kind of occasion presents itself, who knows what can happen? . Ryan Succop's new deal (reportedly $4M per year) should become an important data point for Graham Gano. Call 1-800-GAMBLER. In 1969 he made 27. In 2008, free agent Nick Novak didnt last the season, either; he was replaced by Connor Barth after just six weeks. The Chiefs retired Stenerud's jersey number 3 in his honor. He was inducted to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1991 as the first exclusive placekicker to receive the honor. If you mis-hit the ball while kicking barefoot . ", "Sure it helped," said Stram, grinning. Quiz Though ineligible for football competition that season, Sweeney encouraged Stenerud to suit up with the team for the final home game of 1964, to help him better understand the unfamiliar American game. Its always worth reflecting on a player who was great in Green Bay and loved his time there, to boot. Having retired in 1985, Stenerud doesn't kick field goals any more. I did. A member of the Pro Football Hall of Fames Class of 1991, Jan was the first pure placekicker someone who didnt also play another position to be enshrined. MSU students arrived at Gatton Field early to watch Stenerud kick on warmups. He was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1991. Back then, a field goal that fell short was merely considered a live ball. Sports Illustrated 366K subscribers Kansas City Chiefs Hall of Fame Kicker Jan Stenerud teaches SI Now host Maggie Gray the proper technique for kicking a field goal. Hed become all the more enchanted with the sport after attending the nearby Oslo Olympics in 1952. Jan Stenerud was born in 1940s. Jan Steneruds birth sign is Sagittarius and he has a ruling planet of Jupiter. The first Norwegian to play in the NFL, Stenerud pioneered the soccer-style kicking that is used by all modern placekickers and was the first pure kicker to be inducted into the Pro Football Hall . And this one day, I decided to go down and kick a few footballs, and all of us played a lot of soccer, and I guess I had one urge to try this oval ball. By the time he was 20, he was among the best jumpers in the nation and performing in front of 80,000 people at Norways most imposing skiing site, Holmenkollbakken. Players for the Eagles, Broncos, Rams, and Steelers were all known to kick off their shoes before kicking off the game (except for the Rams their kicker always wore shoes on kickoffs). It was supposed to be a fake, with the ball snapped directly to Stenerud. "O.K.," he said, "I'm loose. And he knew what he was talking about. Jan Stenerud Net Worth said Stram, jabbing a finger at the charts. He was an All-American ski jumper on a ski scholarship. He scored 100 or more points in seven different seasons. He isKansas City's record-holder in career points. "Now that tall fellow over there is called a quarterback and those big fat fellows are tackles, and that chalk line you are standing on is called the 50-yard line and, say, why don't you set the ball down and try and kick it way down there through those two skinny poles, which are called goalposts?" The Chiefs lead their division with a 7-1 record and he leads the American League scoring race with 83 points. By David Eulitt Fifty years ago this. Stenerud, the middle of Johan and Klara Steneruds three children, was skiing since before he can remember: from the jumps his father built outside their house in Fetsund (population approximately 7,000) to the improvised ones hed contrive like other local kids or at any of a half-dozen venues that lit the town at night. Enter and space open menus and escape closes them as well. Like snapping my helmet before a third-down play ends. The 6-2, 187-pound Stenerud excelled for 19 seasons and 263 games in pro football. After living in Colorado working in business development for HNTB Architecture, he and his wife, Patty, returned a few years ago, and its been a remarkable life even if he dwells more than anyone ought to on one dark moment. The White House was occupied by a B-movie actor, Hollywood seemed to want to make any cocaine-fueled idea for a movie that it could find, and football kickers were punting and scoring field goals in the dead of winter. "One day of my junior year in 1964, I ran the stadium steps, and the kicker was kicking field goals. Sponsored by USAA, the 2023 Salute to Service Sign up for our newsletter and receive the mighty updates! Independence is one of their greatest strengths, but sometimes they're overly frank with others. The Packers have a perfectly good kicker! "I didn't have one thing to do with developing Stenerud as a kicker. As young adults during the McCarthy Era, many members of this generation felt it was dangerous to speak out. I had to read that about three times before I understood it. Shortly after receiving a recruitment letter from Montana State Bobcats ski coach Bob Beck, Jan Stenerud set foot on American soil to begin his college athletic career. Kicker: 1980-83. As Stenerud recalls it now, after badly topping his first attempt, he boomed several some 70 yards. The first Norwegian to play in the NFL, Stenerud pioneered the soccer-style kicking that is used by all modern placekickers and was the first pure kicker to be inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. And after watching him that day, we were convinced that he would add the dimension we were seeking. Jan holds the record for career field goals, 373. After Butkers miss in the second quarter, it was Colquitt, a 13-year veteran, who gave the rookie a pep talk that boosted Butkers spirits, so much so that in critical situations late in the fourth quarter, Reid had no qualms in trusting Butker to make his kicks. We look forward to getting him in there and seeing how he does., That whole week was probably the strangest week of my life, he told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Tab will move on to the next part of the site rather than go through menu items. Most positions require skill, strength, speed, intelligence and mental toughness. And painfulhe was wearing tennis shoes. She is not dating anyone. Please make sure JavaScript is enabled and then try loading this page again. In his postgame press conference, he took a cue from Butkers Twitter handle @buttkicker7, and referred to him as Buttkicker-dot-com.. Real-time updates and all local stories you want right in the palm of your hand. He was a consistent role model for his family, his university, pro football and the great fans of this country. Stenerud joined the Kansas City Chiefs in 1967, and in his first three seasons he made 70% of his field-goal tries, while the other kickers in the NFL and AFL combined for 53%. He's already made two from 52 yards this season. Jan Stenerud (/stnrud/, Norwegian: [stnrd] (listen); born November 26, 1942) is a Norwegian-American former football placekicker who played in the National Football League (NFL) and American Football League (AFL) for 19 seasons, primarily with Kansas City Chiefs. Is Butker finally the right man for the job? Jan Stenerud, who was born November 26, 1942, in Fetsund, Norway, was an outstanding ski jumper who attended Montana State on a skiing scholarship. Butker might also have been fortunate to land with the Chiefs, with whom Dustin Colquitt would be holding his kicks, and special teams coordinator Dave Toub, who knows when its time to just get out of the way. He was released immediately. My dad, who passed away two years ago, always had ambitious dreams and goals, while my mother had always been a realist. In many cases, the placekicker also serves as the team's kickoff specialist or punter. Went down and tried a few with toes like everybody else kicked those days. I'm even ashamed to tell my wife about it. Generation. When the great kicker, Jan Stenerud was set to attempt a relatively short range field goal that, if good (ode to announcer broadcasting great, Lindsey Nelson) would have yielded a K.C. Hall of Fame kicker Jan Stenerud was reliable and productive in Green Bay, Friday NFL Scouting Combine Review: WR/TE interviews, DB workouts, 4 receivers to look out for in the first round of the 2023 NFL Draft, Dynamic slot receivers will be available in the middle of the first round, he said in an interview with Monday Night Football in 2000, Packers WR Randall Cobb has ankle surgery ahead of free agency, Thursday NFL Scouting Combine Review: DB interviews, DL/LB workouts, Panthers have called Packers about possible Aaron Rodgers trade, per report, 3 top defensive back prospects have formal meetings with Packers at NFL Combine. I am just thrilled to death that I got that opportunity.. The New England Patriots kicker Tony Franklin even made a 59-yard field goal while completely shoeless. The official source for NFL news, video highlights, fantasy football, game-day coverage, schedules, stats, scores and more. Along with his 13 seasons in Kansas City, Stenerud was a member of the Green Bay Packers for four seasons and the Minnesota Vikings for two seasons until retiring in 1985. Gary Richards and Terry Albrecht came all the way out from the great state of Montana to share this day with me, I appreciate it, guys, very much. But I did get the ball out to mid-field. I love you and I appreciate that for the rest of my life. Arrowheadlines: Mahomes left-handed pass is Andy Reids favorite, Eric Bieniemy has recruited his first Chiefs player to Washington, according to a report. There are certain occasions in everybody's life that make you think about the people that influenced you the most and helped you. He made his very first field goal inhis first attempt, a 54-yarder against Houston in 1967. He can, he says,. Called the bank shot just forgot to tell Colquitt. Thats what you do when The ButtKicker finally finds his way to your team. After awhile they asked me to try. Against archrival Montana, he boomed a 59-yarder, shattering the NCAA record, in a 24-7 win. "It's really silly," he says. In his first collegiate season, Jan connected on seven field goals more than the Bobcats had converted in the previous three seasons combined. I will also be grateful for the opportunity to play professional football." Butker is now well-established as the Chiefs placekicker, and its wouldnt be a stretch to think the Chiefs will do their best to hang on to him when his rookie contract expires in 2021. And though its hardly the headline in the overall scope of a wild game, Stenerud did kick the game-winner in the Packers 48-47 Monday Night Football romp with the Washington Redskins that year. As I became more and more familiar for this great game, I learned to appreciate the skills necessary to play the various positions. I didnt know the first thing about a soccer-style kicker.. Maybe, maybe not, but thats not really the point. And he was not just a kicker, he was an athlete. He attended Montana State on a ski jumping scholarship (and was an All-American in 1964), but later was. In his first four seasons with Kansas City, he made 72%of his field goals when the league average was 50%. Odds & lines subject to change. Hes kicking distances I havent seen before, Jan recalled in an interview. He'll show you how to put it on. In a perfect world, Stenerud would have scored a touchdown behind the two guards who had pulled. And the third and the fourth. In his first college season, he connected on a then-NCAA record 59-yard field goal and scored 82 points. I felt ridiculous.". Nearly 30 years ago, I was recruited from Norway to Montana State on a ski scholarship. Butkers field goal tied the game, but then this happened as time expired. Late in his sophomore year, Stenerud was spotted kicking a football by the college's basketball coach, who relayed the news of the Norwegian's abilities to the football coach. But for the Panthers, thats all spilt milk. In our Walkthroughs post yesterday, we discussed what players wed bring back from the pre-Wolf/Holmgren/Favre era to improve the 2020 Packers. "The things I do. From 1994 until Ryan Succop joined the team in 2009, only one kicker had stayed with the team longer than three seasons: longtime Miami Dolphins placekicker Pete Stoyanovich handled placekicking from 1996 into the 2000 season. He wasn't only one of the greatest quarterbacks of all times, he was my holder, of course, my first 19 years in the NFL, and he was very instrumental in my success. That was 60 field goals ago. Jan Stenerud, who was born November 26, 1942, in Fetsund, Norway, was an outstanding ski jumper who attended Montana State on a skiing scholarship. This and his excellent academics explain how Stenerud came to be offered a skiing scholarship to Montana State and why his parents insisted he accept it, particularly because they could not afford higher education in Norway at the time. We are all very, very proud of you, Jan. Good luck and God bless. Jan Stenerud Autographed Signed 8X10 Photo Packers Kicking Fg JSA WIN. Ruling Planet: Jan Stenerud has a ruling planet of Jupiter and has a ruling planet of Jupiter and by astrological associations Thursday is ruled by Jupiter. A six-time all-league selection, Stenerud played in two AFL All-Star Games and in four AFC-NFC Pro Bowls. Jan Stenerud kicks a field goal in the second quarter of Super Bowl IV against the Vikings in 1970. . Atlanta had drafted Stenerud at the end of the season, and he had promised to talk with the Falcons before making a decision. You made a real impact on me. But the most glaring and, thus, lingering elements were three field goals that Stenerud didnt make, something that over the years he has alternately attempted to joke about, expressed incredible pain over or declined comment on. He won Super Bowl IV under Chiefs head coach Hank Stram. But from virtually the time he made his first attempt with the Chiefs (from 54 yards away) to stints with the Packers and Vikings before the end of his career in 1985, Stenerud was the best kicker in the game. I'm sure no one in the stands actually thought I'd make it. He began to laugh. If you see something that doesnt look right, contact us. Ive been in Atlanta my whole life, now Im in Kansas City a different part of the country. JUMP TO: Jan Steneruds biography, facts, family, personal life, zodiac, videos, net worth, and popularity. Like Succop in 2009, Butker had been picked by the Panthers in the seventh round of the 2017 NFL draft. And that first-half miss from 29 yards out? Moseley scored on a then league-record 23 straight field. He had me work from there, and now it's just like kicking from the middle or the left. Stenerud told Kleiner some 54 years later, Stenerud compared playing for the Packers, Stenerud told MontanaSports.com in February 2020, The Life And Career Of Bobby Bell (Story), The Life And Career Of Mack Lee Hill (Story), The Life And Career Of Priest Holmes (Complete Story), The Life And Career Of Len Dawson (Story), The Life And Career Of Albert Lewis (Story), The Life And Career Of Tamba Hali (Story), The Life And Career Of Johnny Robinson (Complete Story), The Life And Career Of Trent Green (Complete Story), The Life And Career Of Neil Smith (Complete Story), The Legend Of LB Derrick Thomas (Complete Bio), The Life And Career Of Steve DeBerg (Complete Story), The Life And Career Of Christian Okoye (Complete Story). Oops. I didn't even know what a field goal was. Jan Stenerud. Perhaps this was what had kept the Panthers from committing to him. He was one of the first placekickers to use the "soccer style", a technique the Hungarian-born Pete Gogolak had recently introduced in the AFL. "Right down the middle," Reid yelled. But Succop wasnt the first young kicker the team had tried. On Christmas Day 1971, the Chiefs hosted the Miami Dolphins in an AFC divisional playoff game. Height: 6-2; Weight: 187. That's why I got out there every day; I was the guy doing the learning. The ball curved upward at about 90 m.p.h. Jan was the most accurate kicker in all of pro football from '80 to '84; hemade 82% of this field goals. In 1994, he was selected to the NFL's 75th Anniversary Team. Stenerud, who grew up playing soccer, went down to the field and tried kicking the football. This is the land of opportunity, Stenerud remembered thinking. Meet 2 women who tried to catch him, Super Bowl champ Chiefs players arent happy. For 19 years, Jan Stenerud has been winning games with field goals. I talked about some of the luck involved. Still Salvy after all these years: Stolen base symbolizes Sal Perezs endless energy, Jackson Mahomes accused of assault by Overland Park restaurant owner and waiter, Is Travis Kelce Chiefs most eligible bachelor? He was elected to the Hall of Fame in 1991 and remains the only player who was primarily a kicker enshrined in Canton, Ohio. Its not an exaggeration to say he was one of the leagues most accurate kickers during that time period. As a 24-year-old, I would love to line up against anybody in the league (now) and kick the football, Stenerud said, smiling as he recovers from a broken kneecap from a recent fall. How tall was Jan Stenerud? Robert Holmes 3 yard rush (Jan Stenerud kick) 3: 7: 2: Chiefs: Jan Stenerud 52 yard field goal : 3: 10: Chiefs: Jan Stenerud 8 yard field goal : 3: 13: 3: Bills: Bruce Alford 34 yard field goal : 6: 13: . It all recalls the nickname Andy Reid gave him after his first game as a Chief. He had been listed as a senior the year before, but purposely fell seven credits short of graduation in order to take another crack at this crazy game called football. Stenerud was one of the first professional football players to be used as a dedicated kicker, because of his excellent "sharpshooting" ball-kicking performance. He would later go on to kick for the Green Bay. NFL placekicker who became the first pure placekicker to earn an induction into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Those two seasons represented the lowest point of a long, bad stretch of placekicking inconsistency for the Chiefs. Jan Stenerud's 20-yard field goal with 50 seconds left lifted Green Bay over Washington in the highest-scoring Monday Night game ever. Jan Stenerud (/stnrud/, Norwegian: [stenrd ]; born November 26, 1942) is a Norwegian -born former American football player for the AFL /NFL Kansas City Chiefs (1967-1979), Green Bay Packers (1980-1983), and Minnesota Vikings (1984-1985). He influenced the Rules Committee to change the field goal and kickoff rules in 1974, his seventh year in the league. And I didn't know anything about football. Those are very kinds words, and I appreciate them very much. But in 2017, Santos missed several preseason games with a groin injury. Jan Stenerud, a native of Fetsund, Norway, took a crooked path to football immortality. The whole time, Im thinking, Im ready for this. "Ah, never mind, son," said Sweeney. We liked him coming out. He went out for spring practice in 1965 and made the team the following fall. Three months later, he signed a free agent contract with the Green Bay Packers, with whom he stayed with for four seasons. I can honestly say that if you havent played football in Green Bay and youve been in the NFL a long time, youve missed out on something special, he said in an interview with Monday Night Football in 2000. Stenerud had played soccer as a youth in Norway, and his right leg's prowess was observed by basketball head coach Roger Craft, while he walked to the nearby Fieldhouse. Something went wrong. They were too young to see action in World War II and too old to participate in the fun of the Summer of Love. Jan is a total Hall of Fame package:productive, consistent and enduring. He was a great competitor, and no one was better than Jan when the game was on the line. As of 2017, only four kickers have been elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame: George Blanda, Lou Groza, Jan Stenerud and Morten Andersen, and among them, Stenerud and Andersen are the only ones who did not also play another position. Jan Stenerud is that body in motion, and I will elaborate on his impact with the Kansas City Chiefs, the American Football League and the National Football League, the record books and the Hall of Fame. He was a seven-time All-Pro and won Super Bowl IV . But Stenerud set another college record which should stand forever: a 113-yard field goal try. He was respected, admired and loved by his teammates and coaches. When we got to Houston I got a special pair of shoes. We will continue to update information on Jan Steneruds parents. Sign up for the "If we don't sign this kid right now," said Arbanas, "we'll be making the biggest mistake of our lives." said Hank Stram, the Chiefs' burly little coach. The video below features Franklin kicking in the 1985 AFC Championship game. He speaks that language. Fact Check: We strive for accuracy and fairness. It gives me, of course, a sense of pride and accomplishment, but most of all I feel very, very lucky. Also, it can get really cold out there. And in the meantime, some of my teammates at Montana State had informed me that they see a guy on television from the Buffalo Bills, Pete Gogolak, who had been kicking in the same style that I had displayed, and they also had convinced me to go out for the team. $224.99. Jan Stenerud was born on the 26th of November, 1942. The Chiefs might run through a few, for instance, on a Friday afternoon. General 73 SPD 77 ACC 64 AGI Kicking 99 KPW 93 KAC Fake 37 SAC 33 MAC 38 THP 23 RUN CHIEFS WIN!! He was a total team player. * 21+ (19+ CA-ONT) (18+ NH/WY). The next day, the Chiefs placed Santos on injured reserve and plucked Harrison Butker off the practice squad of the Carolina Panthers. The early 1940s were dominated by World War II. Jan Stenerud is a Football Player, zodiac sign: Sagittarius. Well, why not? He made five field goals twice against Buffalo the year we won the Super Bowl. They have one thing in common, however;Jan is named on all of them. Most coaches don't, or at least I don't think they do. When I came to Kansas City in 1967, he went out on the practice field several weeks before training camp started. $109.99. quote: However if you try to smash the ball on a 50 yarder. He knows all the finer points to kicking.. "Do you want to loosen your leg?" Needless to say, he made a dramatic impact. In the AFL, Jan made his first kick a 54-yard field goal in the 1967 season opener against Houston. Jan Stenerud (/stnrud/, born November 26, 1942) is a former professional football player for the American Football League's Kansas City Chiefs (1967-1969), and the NFL's Chiefs (1970-1979), Green Bay Packers (1980-1983), and Minnesota Vikings (1984-1985). But Stram reassured and convinced him that he had much left to give. Jan 29, 2018 . Jan Steneruds mothers name is unknown at this time and his fathers name is under review. One of the field goals was blocked, for instance. Stenerud retired after the 1985 season, his 19th (3 AFL, 16 NFL). Moreover, the crucial practice repetitions among snapper, holder and kicker were afterthoughts. On one of the other days Jan was running steps, a kicker on the football team practicing on his own encouraged Jan to join him. Tommy O'Boyle, our Director of Player Personnel, and I went to the game and watched him kick the opening kickoff through the uprights and eight rows into the bleachers. Dating & Relationship status She is currently single. Your request appears similar to malicious requests sent by robots. Im so used to seeing Carolina blue and Panthers stuff having been in Charlotte and now its red, which is weird, having gone to Georgia Tech.. pic.twitter.com/3N9Zv2HICJ. When I think of Jan, I think of impact, and impact defined is "an instantaneous stroke communicated through a body in motion." In October he kicked a 59-yard field goal against Montana, the longest kick in football history to that point. While we don't know Jan Stenerud birth time, but we do know his mother gave birth to his on a Thursday. After three seasons particularly after Santos 2016 overtime kick against the Broncos in Denver doinked off the left upright and slipped in behind the right one to win the game it seemed that the Chiefs might have finally found a long-term solution at the position. Does all that add up to a player worth swapping for Mason Crosby? On this day, Jan heard 10 words that changed not only the trajectory of his life but also the record books in college football and in two professional football leagues in the decades that followed. When the Chiefs were playing the Miami Dolphins at the end of the 1966 season, they invited Stenerud to Miami for a tryout. 4 tight end prospects for Chiefs fans to watch at the NFL Scouting Combine. Terms at draftkings.com/sportsbook. I just know getting the ball through the uprights is good, but Dustin he knows the finer points [from] doing it so long as a veteran, and [as] one of the best holders in the league. Hes got a strong leg. He didn't just talk to me about signing, he talked about kicking. And all of a sudden, I realized if I approach this ball at an angle and hit it with the side of my foot, it was more comfortable for me. I wasn't really familiar with the game, but I guess I did OKbecause Coach Sweeney tried to convince me to go out for spring football the next year, which I did. When no deal could be made, the Panthers cut Butker, held their breath and placed him on their practice squad after he cleared waivers. They have AstroTurf there and we worked out on it. In the AFL, Jan made his first kick - a 54-yard field goal in the 1967 season opener against Houston. 11834 posts. I always felt if I had two bad games in a row, I would be unemployed.