It’s difficult not to be impressed when a kicker makes a field goal from beyond 60 yards. New Orleans Saints rookie Charlie Smyth seems to be doing it regularly. But head coach Dennis Allen made it clear that while those kicks are impressive, they won’t be the deciding factor when choosing between Smyth and Blake Grupe.
Smyth knocked in a pair of long kicks prior to the first preseason game, and he added another one from 65 yards at Tuesday’s open practice that had room to spare.
By Allen’s count, Smyth made five-of-six field goals from 60 yards or more on Tuesday. Allen said that “it’s nice to know that you can knock one in from 65” but later went on to say “we’re not going to attempt a lot of 65 yarders.” That’s obviously a risk that teams are only choosing to take in select situations.
Instead, Allen is focusing on kicks inside of 50 yards. These are the tries you’ll see more often. Smyth is improving here as well. Allen is looking for a little more consistency but acknowledged how much better Smyth has gotten: “Where he is now from where he was when he first got here, he’s improved significantly.”
There’s one final test coming up in the final preseason game. Last year Grupe displaced Wil Lutz. Could Smyth push him aside this summer? Earning trust on field goals from a more moderate distance is important, but so is nailing his technique on kickoffs. Smyth has put a couple of kickoffs out of bounds at training camp so we’ll be looking for improvement in that phase, too.
Something to keep in mind? Even if he doesn’t win the job, Smyth can stick with the Saints and continue to develop on their practice squad. They’ve been given an extra spot for him as part of the NFL International Player Pathway program.
