How 49ers ST Coach is Simulating In-Game Pressure for the Kickers

Competition is the name of the game for the San Francisco 49ers during training camp.

They haven’t had so many positions up for grabs since 2018, as head coach Kyle Shanahan would put it. One of the more intense battles is with the kicker position.

The 49ers brought in veteran Greg Joseph to create competition for Jake Moody. It was necessary to do so after the abysmal year Moody had.

Rather than cut ties with Moody, which probably should have been done, the 49ers are going to give him one last chance by competing with Joseph.

The hope is that Moody rises to the occasion and can perform well under pressure created by the competition. However, pressure in practice is nowhere near the same as in a game.

Moody could nail all of his kicks in camp, then suddenly collapse in a game because it’s meaningful. That is where special teams coordinator Brant Boyer comes in.

He’s structured the kicking competition in a way that simulates in-game pressure. That way, the kicks both players attempt can be assessed at face value. 

“I want to see them go back-to-back, see if they compete,” Boyer said. “I want to see them kicking in the same wind direction, things like that so it's the exact same kick right after and see how they handle it and let the team see them. You know, that's how you create pressure on the guys. And I think it's good. I think it's really good for competition.”

Boyer has essentially taken the concept of a penalty kick shootout in soccer. By making Moody and Joseph kick one after the other, they place pressure on each other.

If one of them makes it, they know they can’t miss it when it is their attempt. Plus, the entire team is watching them to increase the pressure.

That is exactly what a penalty shootout in soccer is. Players follow up on each other to see if they can match them while their team watches them.

Both kickers also know they are competing not only for the starting job, but a roster spot as well. Boyer has done everything to simulate in-game pressure as much as possible.

That isn’t easy to do, but it seems he’s nailed it. Whoever wins the job will get to prove in the regular season if that simulation benefited them beyond camp.