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Analysts were not snickering in the offseason when the Chargers signed Caleb Sturgis. Back then, no one predicted that when Week 9 rolled around, CBS' broadcast of the Chargers' victory at Seattle would feature a graphic noting that Sturgis had become the first player since 1979 to miss both a field goal try and an extra point in three consecutive games.
Here we are.
The Chargers have a very good team overall. Last season, their offense and defense both ranked among the top 10 in ESPN's efficiency metrics. The Vikings, Eagles and Rams were the only other teams able to make that claim. Unlike those other teams, the Chargers missed the playoffs. Their special teams were to blame. The Chargers lost more than 23 expected points on field goal tries alone, the third-worst figure out of 384 teams from 2006 to 2017.
As for this season? The Chargers ranked 31st in special-teams efficiency heading into Week 9. While their overall special-teams performance has improved markedly since an especially bad opening week against Kansas City, the kicking game remains a question mark.
The Chargers signed Sturgis in March. From 2013 through last season, Sturgis ranked 32nd out of 36 qualifying kickers in field goal accuracy from 41 to 54 yards. Why isolate those yardages? Because kickers made 93 percent of tries from shorter than that distance, while missing more than half of tries longer than that distance. That leaves the middle distances as the ones where kickers differentiate themselves.
After signing Sturgis, Chargers GM Tom Telesco told reporters the former Eagles kicker was one of multiple options. He said the team would "fix" the position, but does any team really know how to evaluate kickers? Mostly, they seem to sign or draft them, then hope.
Here we are.
The Chargers have a very good team overall. Last season, their offense and defense both ranked among the top 10 in ESPN's efficiency metrics. The Vikings, Eagles and Rams were the only other teams able to make that claim. Unlike those other teams, the Chargers missed the playoffs. Their special teams were to blame. The Chargers lost more than 23 expected points on field goal tries alone, the third-worst figure out of 384 teams from 2006 to 2017.
As for this season? The Chargers ranked 31st in special-teams efficiency heading into Week 9. While their overall special-teams performance has improved markedly since an especially bad opening week against Kansas City, the kicking game remains a question mark.
The Chargers signed Sturgis in March. From 2013 through last season, Sturgis ranked 32nd out of 36 qualifying kickers in field goal accuracy from 41 to 54 yards. Why isolate those yardages? Because kickers made 93 percent of tries from shorter than that distance, while missing more than half of tries longer than that distance. That leaves the middle distances as the ones where kickers differentiate themselves.
After signing Sturgis, Chargers GM Tom Telesco told reporters the former Eagles kicker was one of multiple options. He said the team would "fix" the position, but does any team really know how to evaluate kickers? Mostly, they seem to sign or draft them, then hope.
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