December 30, 2012; San Francisco, CA, USA; Arizona Cardinals kicker Jay Feely (3) is congratulated by punter Dave Zastudil (9) for making a field goal during the first quarter against the San Francisco 49ers at Candlestick Park. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports
There has been a lot of change with the Arizona Cardinals roster and coaching staff in the off-season heading into training camp, which is scheduled to start less than three weeks from now. The one area that will look relatively the same will be the kicking game. As of today, the Cards still have Jay Feely as the only kicker on the roster. There is another punter on the roster besides incumbent Dave Zastudil and that is first-year punter Will Baston.
Feely is headed into his fourth season as the Cards kicker. He has provided as much stability to the position as the man before him, Neil Rackers, provided. It isn’t a rarity but it isn’t as common these days either to see a kicker with the same team for several seasons in a row. The position comes with a lot of turnover.
Last season Feely went 25-28 in field goal attempts. He went 25-25 in extra-point attempts. Of course one of his three misses was a potential game winner against the Buffalo Bills early in the 2012 season. People wanted his head but quickly forgot the Cards wouldn’t have even been in that position without him.
As for Zastudil, he is entering his third season punting for the Cards. He averaged 46.5 with a net average of 41.4 yards – both career highs.He also pinned 46 punts inside the 20, also a career high. Batson has no regular season experience, however that doesn’t mean he won’t provide any competition. It is another leg to look at in camp. I fully expect Zastudil to win the job however.