Five games, five missed field-goal attempts and enough armchair psychologists to fill 63,142-seat Network Associates Coliseum.
Is it any wonder Raiders rookie kicker Sebastian Janikowski slipped out of the visiting locker room at 3Com Park last Sunday with little more to say than Marcel Marceau after missing two more field-goal attempts and nearly costing his team a victory?
There’s plenty for Janikowski to worry about without being asked repeatedly why he is struggling less than six months after the Raiders made him only the fourth kicker drafted in the first round.
With Janikowski ducking reporters, it leaves his teammates and coaches to speculate on what’s going through his mind these days.
When asked if Janikowski is frustrated, punter Shane Lechler said: “You gotta be. It’s only human to be frustrated. He ought to be [upset].”
Lechler ought to know as much about Janikowski’s mind-set as anybody. Lechler lives with Janikowski, holds for him on field goals and extra points and is his closest friend.
Yet there’s only so much one can say, Lechler said. At some point, Janikowski needs to find a way to regain the reliable leg swing that made him one of the hottest kicking prospects ever after a stellar career at Florida State.
That entails forgetting about the 41-yard miss with 4:46 left in the fourth quarter and the Raiders and 49ers tied at 28. It means blocking out the miss from 35 yards with 11:53 left in overtime that would have given the Raiders a 31-28 victory. It means overlooking the fact that his five misses in 11 attempts–he is 29th in the league in success rate–is as many or more than the other 30 teams in the league.
“You try to block it out, try to put it behind you,” Lechler said. “When you’re a competitor, that’s the hardest thing to do, put something bad behind you, but it’s the most important thing you’ve got to do.”
Fortunately for Janikowski and the Raiders, none of his five misses has cost them a victory. That doesn’t mean his misses aren’t taking a toll on the other players, as well. Several players said it was difficult regrouping and going back on the field after each of Janikowski’s misses against the 49ers.
“It takes a whole lot out of you,” offensive right tackle Lincoln Kennedy said. “It’s very draining.”
Janikowski’s kickoffs are effective and a key reason the average starting position of Oakland’s opponents is fourth-worst in the league. His eight touchbacks are second in the league.
It’s his struggles on field goal attempts that have every Tom, Dick and Garo suggesting remedies. Janikowski’s six successful field goals range in yardage from 19 to 37. He is 0-for-4 from beyond 40 yards, with none longer than 50. By comparison, Michael Husted made 8 of 12 from 40 to 49 yards for the Raiders in 1999. Also, Janikowski did not miss from inside of 45 yards his final season at Florida State.
“We expect him to make those kicks,” Gruden said. “I have great confidence in his ability from any hash mark, any time we’re inside the 50-yard range. He’s a great kicker. I’m not going to waver on that. I know it hasn’t worked out the first five ballgames, from a percentage standpoint.
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“But I see great talent and I see a guy who is going to be a great addition to our team. It just may take a little bit longer than maybe we expected.”