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XLII - News from the New York Tynes

XLII - News from the New York Tynes

By Ian Allen

Phoenix -

Most of the time all of the focus and attention during a football game is on offense and defense. Very rarely will special teams be paid attention to until….the game is on the line. All of a sudden everyone’s hearts on the field, in the stands, and all of ones at home with their eyes glued to the television set, are beating at an uneasy pulse of anxiety. But then there is that kicker who has the most imperative mistake free job in football to kick the ball through the upright and win the game. Here in the Super Bowl town of Phoenix, Arizona, I spoke to Lawrence Tynes the star studded confident kicker for the New York Giants.

After I bulldozed my way through about 20 microphones (using my old offensive linemen ways), I ended up getting 1st dibbs on LT. Lawrence is a former teammate of mine as well, and we came in the NFL together as rookies with the KC Chiefs undrafted. There is always something different about LT even though he is a kicker. Most guys sometimes feel that there are players, and then…the kicker. But LT is always very confident, and he is one of those guys who are natural born leaders. He spends countless amount of hours practicing his kicks during the offseason, he is a true pro. I like to call him the “Confident Kicker”…because he is.

That’s why it was a surprise for me when he missed the field goals before he kicked the game winner in the NFC Championship game. So I wanted to find out what was going through his mind and how he responded like a true pro to finish the job. He replied to the inquiry by saying, “well the 1st one, the 43 yarder with about 7 minutes left,…I went out there carelessly,…the 2nd one I let the bad snap get to me, and I yanked it…but you know I said to myself, if we get a good snap and a good hold (on the last 47 yard field goal), we’ll make it, and we did it.” For me, 1st you can see the accountability, and the knowledge that the Confident Kicker has when it comes to evaluating the play. But here is one surprise for you, that gives you even more insight into who the person Lawrence Tynes is. During the 2006 offseason, Lawrence Tynes was back in KC, and they were offering him a decent contract for his position, and he choose to wait for another opportunity because he knew his worh…confidence.

LT has some international ties as well, playing in Canada, Scotland, and back to America. Here are his thoughts on that, “well you know Ian, it helps you develop as a player, but we’ve been around on a world stage as a team this year, we played a lot of national games, and we played one in London, and no we’re here in the Super Bowl, it really helps as a whole.”

From my perspective, it is always good to see a person be rewarded for their hard work and dedication, all you need is…time.

Until next time.