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Special teams have played a key role in the history of the Super Bowl, from Scott Norwood’s 47-yard “wide right” attempt in 1991 to Adam Vinatieri’s 48-yard game winner as time expired in 2002. On the path to Super Bowl LX, the Seahawks and Patriots have invested very differently in their special teams units.
Seattle spends more per year than any team in the NFL on its kicker and punter combined at $9.325 million. Jason Myers is the eighth-highest-paid kicker, earning $5.275 million, while Michael Dickson is the top-earning punter at $4.05 million. The next closest team to Seattle’s spending at these positions is the Raiders at $8.55 million.
The Patriots differ in their special teams strategy. Kicker Andres Borregales and punter Bryce Baringer, both on rookie contracts, earn a combined $2.12 million, which places the team among the bottom of special-teams spending across the entire league. They are one of three teams in the NFL to have both positions on four-year rookie contracts, alongside the Baltimore Ravens and Los Angeles Rams.
Both teams’ kickers have had similar levels of success this season, with Myers and Borregales making 85.4% and 84.4% of attempts, respectively. Myers, the two-time Pro Bowler, has made 8 of 10 kicks in his six career playoff appearances, converting all three attempts this postseason. Borregales went 4 for 6 in New England’s three playoff games, with his two misses being a 46-yard attempt in the snow and a 63-yard attempt, both in Denver.
One would expect that this roster construction would favor the Seahawks, but the history of the Super Bowl disagrees. The last three rookie kickers to kick in the Super Bowl have all been perfect in their field goal attempts. In fact, rookies hold a higher field goal percentage than non-rookies in the big game, albeit on a much smaller sample size. Rookies have converted on 18 of 20 attempts (90%), while non-rookies are 145 for 195 (74.4%).
Jake Moody, the most recent rookie kicker in a Super Bowl, drilled two 50+ yard attempts for the 49ers in Super Bowl LVIII. That said, Moody had an extra point blocked which ended up being costly in San Francisco’s 25–22 overtime loss to Kansas City.
On the punting side, Dickson has been excellent since signing a four-year, $16.2 million extension in June. He has been lights out in the playoffs, downing 7 of his 8 punts inside the 20 and earning second team AP All Pro honors this season.
Baringer, now in his third year in the NFL, was solid during the regular season, averaging 47.4 yards per punt. However he has struggled in the playoffs, averaging only 40.3 yards in his 19 punts. New England has played in bad weather throughout the postseason, but Baringer’s struggles do raise concerns ahead of the Super Bowl.
