Anybody here (besides me) olde enough to remember Lou Grosza?
Back in Grosza's day kickers were traditionally linemen like Grosza until soccer started to become popular in America. Then a few soccer-style kickers crossed over as novelties and misfits (Garo Yeprmian's famous run - he never played football as a kid, only knew how to kick) until it became clear that the soccer style kick was more effective. Also, in Grosza's day the kicker was expected to do something else to make a living, usually play on the line - as it was thought that bulky players had more foundation and leg strength for kicking. Kicking was almost an afterthought.
Before that transition became the norm, Danny Villanueva was the Rams kicker for years, and unlike the burly linemen/kicker types, he was a
smaller player who, like his bigger counterparts, handled both place kicking and punting duty for the Rams. His punts traveled a great distance relative to field position, and seemed to hang in the air interminably while his kicking leg straightened to head-high. People wondered how such a "little guy" could kick so well.
I don't recall too many players from the Mexican-American Southern California community in the NFL before Villanueva. He was a fan favorite (for this fan, anyway; I loved to see him come on the field.) and in a couple of ways, a trendsetter - and he was very good at what he did.
