The New Orleans Saints made a bold decision in the offseason. They moved off of veteran kicker Wil Lutz in favor of rookie kicker Blake Grupe.
Grupe started out the season strong, but some inconsistencies have arisen. He missed a game-changing kick at the end of the game versus the Green Bay Packers, and Week 9 against the Chicago Bears brought another clutch missed kick for the rookie.
Grupe missed a 47-yard attempt with under three minutes remaining that would have extended New Orleans' lead to 10 points. A make in that scenario would have, in essence, clinched the victory for the Saints. The miss is not forcing the Saints to abandon Grupe as their kicker yet, though.
Dennis Allen says that the team probably won't bring in competition at this time, but he also did not sound like it is not a possibility if the timely struggles continue for the rookie.
"We have confidence in Blake (Grupe), but yet, we have to evaluate those things. You have to pay attention to it."
-- HC Dennis Allen on Grupe
So far this season, Grupe his 19/19 on extra points. On field goals, 18/23 (78%). Lutz was 14/19 (73.7%) on field goals through his first 9 NFL games. The inconsistency as a rookie kicker is not unheard of, but the Saints are in a spot where they need good play from their kicker.
The timeliness of the misses has been the toughest part for Grupe. Two extremely important missed kicks, one of which resulted in a loss, can leave a bad taste in the mouths of fans.
Regardless, the Saints are not bringing in veteran competition for Grupe yet. The Saints coach did not take any heat off of him if he doesn't step up soon, though.
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