Are Eagles sticking with punter Brett Kern the rest of the way?
As veteran punter Brett Kern comes off his best performance in an Eagles uniform, it sounds like the Eagles are sticking with him.
At least for now.
Im just getting ready with the guys weve got right now, special teams coordinator Michael Clay said on Tuesday. Anything injury-wise, Howie (Roseman) and Coach (Nick) Sirianni will take care of.
But for right now, were game-planning that Bretts our punter so well go on with that.
The Eagles punter this season had been Arryn Siposs until the first Giants game back on Dec. 11, when Siposs suffered a lower leg injury and was put on IR. The Eagles then signed the veteran Kern to replace him.
A couple weeks ago, Siposs emerged in the Eagles locker room and said he believed he would be able to punt in the NFC Championship Game if the Eagles made it there. Well, the Eagles have made it there but Kern turned in a really impressive performance against the Giants.
Kern, 36, punted three times with an average of 43.0 yards per punt and landed all three inside the 20-yard line. His punts pinned the Giants at the 9, 15 and 7.
What worked for Kern on Saturday night?
Staying true to what hes been doing for 14 years, Clay said. Not second-guessing himself more than anything else. He had a really good week of practice, getting into a more natural rhythm of everything. For us, it paid off in that game. You see how much field position changes.
Its possible that Kerns performance on Saturday against the Giants might have saved his position. Because if you compare the numbers from Siposs and Kern during the regular season, its not really close:
Arryn Siposs: 45.6 average, 39.5 net, 16 inside 20 (36.4%)
Brett Kern: 40.8 average, 36.6 net, 1 inside 20 (10%)
One of the points the Eagles always brought up with Siposs was that he was such a steady holder for kicker Jake Elliott. That operation with Elliott, long snapper Rick Lovato and the punter/holder has been very important in Elliotts success.
But that operation hasnt missed a beat with Kern in there either. So its looking like the Eagles might just be willing to keep things rolling.
Hes been such a great holder and our operation did a really good job of hitting our extra points and field goal, Clay said. Just the confidence Brett has going back out there, being true to who he is for 14 years.
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