Image courtesy of New England Patriots
The box score will show that Chad Ryland was 2/4 on field goals in a 15-10 win over the Jets Sunday, but his day was much better than that.
Kicking in brutal elements with the season ultimately on the line three weeks in, Ryland made kicks from 48 and 51 yards, while missing a 57-yarder at the end of the first half and a 48-yarder in the second quarter that was wide right. Still, head coach Bill Belichick had quite a bit of praise for his rookie after the game.
“You know, it was a tough day to kick,” Belichick said postgame. “Had a bunch of long ones, the weather wasn’t great, but I thought (Chad) hit the ball pretty well. Timing on a couple of them could have been a little bit better, we need to have a little cleaner operation, but I thought he showed a lot of mental toughness coming back and making that kick in the third quarter (51-yarder that made it 13-3) after the one at the half that was just kind of …just wasn’t a great operation. He did a good job for us.
“We’ve had a couple bad weather games already in September. That’s not usually the case, but that’s what it is and it’s what we’re going to have to play in, so it was a good learning experience.”
Ryland used the exact same terminology to describe his day when I caught up with him in the locker room postgame.
“I think the big thing today, was it was a great learning experience,” he said. “You learn something every week, every day in the NFL. That’s what I’m always trying to have that open mind to, you know? Go out there and learn, get better and keep progressing.”
Aa for the elements, Ryland laughed a bit when asked about kicking in the miserable conditions at Metlife Stadium.
“I mean, it was raining. Shoot, it was windy,” he said while chuckling. “But, that’s what you’re going to get in the NFL, you know? That’s what you’re going to get every week. You’ve got to be able to match the elements and keep going.’
To be a rookie NFL in the kicker, you have to have a certain level of confidence. But, after not getting a shot against Philadelphia in Week 1, to ultimately providing most of the points for the Patriots in a must-win game on Sunday, that type of trust from a staff can go a long way, especially if New England is going to keep playing tight games all season long.
“I think, as a whole operation, that’s what we’re out there to do. When we go out on the field, we’re expected to make it every time and put good balls down the field (on kickoffs). Obviously, we wanted to do a little bit better than we did, but we’re happy with the win and now we’re getting ready to go back and prepare to play Dallas.
“Honestly, my mindset is always the same. I’m going out on that field and I’m going out to make a kick or kickoff the ball where it needs to be. That’s my mindset whether we’re up by 50 or down by three. I’m going out there and every kick, I’m looking to make.”