Time to cancel Green’s Akers?

By Lou DiPietro  |   Friday, October 31, 2008  |  Comments( 1 )

Philadelphia Eagles
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Philadelphia has a reputation for being a very negative sports town. Throwing batteries and booing Santa Claus will give you that stigma, I suppose.

This past week, that was put on hold when the Phillies ended the City of Brotherly Love’s quarter-century championship drought by winning the World Series. And I must say, being there when a home team wins a world championship is something I hope every fan gets to experience; words can’t do justice to the feeling of standing in Citizens Bank Park on Wednesday night as the Phillies celebrated after closing out the Tampa Bay Rays.

But this is a football column. And while there may still be confetti on the streets of South Philly from the Phillies’ parade as you read this, it’s time for some good old-fashioned Philadelphia negativity.

Being a sports fan is like a roller coaster, undulating through joy and pain, success and failure. But being a fan means that even when things are horrible, you want to believe that it can turn around. You have to believe it - well, unless you’re a Detroit Lions fan. But even that bunch believes deep down that the franchise will get it right eventually.

That’s why, in the midst of an Eagles victory last week, I was dismayed when I heard legendary Eagles radio voice Merrill Reese suggest something. While I risk my journalistic integrity by revealing that I can’t pinpoint the exact quote - hey, it’s hard to tape streaming satellite radio - it went something like this:

“You know what I’d like to see, Mike (Quick, former Eagles receiver and Reese’s broadcast partner)? I’d like to see the Eagles get into range here and let David Akers attempt a long field goal, just to try to help him get some of his confidence back.”

If you can’t grasp how unsettling that is, remember a few things. This was said late in a game where the Eagles, a team that sometimes can’t seem to move the ball forward at all, were driving with a tenuous seven-point lead. Even worse, it was said by a man who may be closer to the team than anyone who doesn’t actually report to Eagles president Joe Banner in some form.

Now, if you’re a non-Eagles fan reading this, you must know something. Reese just isn’t any announcer. He’s a legend and an icon in Philadelphia, a man whom Eagles fans respect, admire and trust - so much so that many mute the television broadcasts of Philly's games and listen to Reese and Quick’s audio broadcast instead.

He didn‘t say it outright, but what he (perhaps unconsciously) suggested was strong enough. It’s something that even the die-hards on the 700level.com forums have posted, but no one wants to outright admit or believe.

It may be time for Akers to go.

Now, after reading nine paragraphs about radio announcers, baseball teams and items on my “bucket list,” you may be a little shocked to uncover the actual content of this writing. Much like Reese, Philadelphia fans love Akers. For the last decade he’s seemingly been automatic in clutch situations, and his career field goal success rate is over 80 percent.

But something has happened to Akers lately: He’s gotten old.

And with that fact of life comes another - when kickers age, they tend to lose a little bit of their leg. Hey, it happens; quarterbacks may lose some arm strength or velocity, running backs lose a step or two. That's life.

But when it happens for those position players, the fall from grace isn’t as sudden. An aging Jerome Bettis gave way to Willie Parker, but he still was an integral part of the Steelers’ championship team a few years ago. Receivers can still get open and make plays. Even old quarterbacks don’t die - just ask Vinny Testaverde, Brad Johnson or Steve DeBerg.

Kickers don’t have that luxury. Teams don’t carry three, four or five of them; two is even a stretch for most of the league. So, when a kicker loses his leg - and thus, his team’s confidence in him - it doesn’t even matter if he’s the most accurate in NFL history like Mike Vanderjagt; he’ll soon find himself out of a job. If you don’t believe that, go track down Vanderjagt and ask him why he now plays in Canada.

In Akers’ case, the facts are simple. While he has never had the leg of a John Kasay or Jason Elam, he has always been good enough - until last year, that is. 2007, in fact, was perhaps Akers’ worst statistical season ever. His kickoff average of 61.8 yards was the second lowest of his career, and he was an abysmal 2 for 10 on field goals beyond 40 yards.

This year, he’s 1 of 5 in that last category, with a long of 44 - which would be a career low. And much like the 55-yarder he doinked off the goalpost last year against the Giants, his four misses in 2008 could have won the Eagles at least two more games.

Sure, he has been perfect on field goals inside 40 and on extra points over the last 23 games - but while I’m not one to say “anyone can do that” relating to any professional athlete’s job, the fact is that there’s a major Division I university whose kicker is a guy they literally pulled out of the stands. Now, before you start thinking that Jeffrey Lurie and Banner should go recreate “The Garbage Picking, Field Goal Kicking Philadelphia Phenomenon” - incidentally, a film that used the aforementioned Vanderjagt as a stunt double for Tony Danza’s titular character - and search for the next Vince Papale, remember that Texas Tech doesn’t quite have the recruiting pool as any NFL team.

Still, when a respected radio announcer is suggesting that a team that finally has its offense clicking on all cylinders for the first time in a month slow down so its kicker can try to overcome a personal obstacle, it should be cause for concern.

It would be hard to replace Akers, at least mentally. This being his 10th year in green, Akers is tied with Donovan McNabb as the third-longest-tenured Eagle behind only Tra Thomas and Brian Dawkins. And while he’s always been “just the kicker,” he’s been a consistent force for the entire Andy Reid era.

But hey, Chris Jacke was the Green Bay Packers’ all-time leading scorer when he was jettisoned in favor of Ryan Longwell. Matt Prater has a job because the Broncos finally decided to let Elam walk. It happens. Not everyone can be New York Giants kicker John Carney, who at 44 was signed to fill in for an injured Lawrence Tynes and only currently leads the NFL in scoring.

Traditionally, Akers hasn’t really had much competition in camp for his job - even Richmond McGee probably figured he stood no chance of making the team out of training camp. But come 2009, it might be time to think about what’s best for the franchise.

And that just might include finally putting David “Green” Akers out to pasture.
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About Lou DiPietro

Lou DiPietro is an accomplished freelance writer who is fascinated with all things sports. In addition to his duties at RealFootball365.com, Lou contributes to TheBleacherReport.com and Pro Wrestling Illustrated magazine, and has been featured on "The Sports Buffet with Matt West" on 1080-AM ESPN...
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