For all the hand wringing about the offense she is 100% right here. Special teams has been a factor in their struggles this year. I
love Fassel. Hekker is the best punter in franchise history and one of the best in the league. Zuerlein is the team's all-time leader in FG% and should one day break Jeff Wilkins' record for FG made and points scored (GZ is one shy of 200 career FG made, by the way). But they have ALL underperformed this year.
Field position is always a big deal in the NFL. And this cannot be understated:
"The Rams are seventeenth in net average punting and are tied for last in punts downed inside the 20-yard line. Hekker has booted four touchbacks, which is tied for the fifth-most in the NFL."Honestly, at times it has felt like Hekker has just booted bombs through the endzone without even trying to corner them.
I worry a lot less about the return game as in today's NFL the KOR role is so much less important. And with punt returners, while it's great to have a dynamic one as long as the guy you have is secure with the ball and gets you 8 yards/return you're OK. But the work of the punt team and the kicker is
absolutely critical. And the Rams need more from theirs.
