McManus: Game-Winning Field Goal On Sunday Wasn't Season's Most Stressful Kick
CENTENNIAL, Colo. (CBS4) - Brandon McManus has lined up to kick a field goal nine different times for the Broncos this season, and he hasn't missed.
The kicker had a big thrill when he kicked his first game winning field goal on Sunday against the Minnesota Vikings, but he says it actually wasn't his most stress-laden kick of the year. None of those nine FGs were. It was an extra point in Kansas City in Week 2 that really got his nerves up.
"That was a more pressure (filled) kick than last night," McManus said on Xfinity Monday Live, describing the extra point against the Chiefs that tied the game. That kick brought the score of the game to 24-24 with 36 seconds left.
"Especially how loud that stadium got just for an extra point. It was unbelievable," he said.
A new NFL rule moved the extra point back 5 yards this year, and while McManus is also perfect in his 10 PAT attempts, some kickers across the league have been missing.
"One of the biggest things that fans and viewers might not realize is when you get an interception or a long touchdown run like the one Ronnie Hillman had the other day, you're not able to warm up in the net, so you've got to go out there and trust yourself, trust your technique," McManus told CBS4's Vic Lombardi on the show.
"Especially when it's a windy day, when it's cold is when there's going to be issues, so just trying to get out there make sure you remember your technique, you're confident with your kick and don't worry about the longer distance because it's still, for the past 10 years it's been a 94 percent made kick at 33 yards, so just get out there and be comfortable."
McManus is also 19 out of 23 for touchbacks in the kickoff game this season. He told Lombardi it's a disappointment for both him and his special team coach Joe DeCamillis when he doesn't get those kicks out of the endzone.
"Coach DeCamillis came in with a great reputation for having great coverage teams. And we kind of want to get that across to our guys to not expect that every kick is going to be a touchback," McManus said. "No matter what, I'm going to make sure I get some hangtime on that and put some direction on it towards the corners. That way, if it does come out we're able to get them inside the 20."
On the show McManus also talked about the tweaks he made this year to his approach when he lines up for kicks. He attributes those changes to winning the kicking job in training camp, and now he's the only kicker in the league that's perfect in extra points and field goal attempts.
So, statistically speaking, right now McManus is the most accurate kicker in the NFL. It's a far cry from 10 months ago when he was unemployed.
"It's just a testament to the hard work I put in to try to get this job back," McManus said. "I didn't give up on myself. I knew what I could do, I just needed to make some corrections."
