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BEN VOLIN I SUNDAY FOOTBALL NOTES

The history behind Bill Belichick’s love for punters

John Tlumacki/Globe Staff/Globe Staff

Bill Belichick strode to the podium Nov. 30 for his first news conference of the week. Like every Wednesday, his opening statement began with a thorough breakdown of the opponent’s personnel.

Belichick led off with an ode to his favorite player on the team.

“Let’s start with the kicking game,” Belichick said. “I mean, [Johnny] Hekker is a tremendous weapon. This guy looks like as good a player as I’ve ever seen at that position. He’s a tremendous weapon in his ability to punt the ball, punt it inside the 20, directional kick it, involved in fakes, can throw, can run, very athletic.”

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Belichick kept it going all week. Fox’s Kevin Burkhardt noted during the Patriots-Rams broadcast that Belichick, unprompted, launched into a 10-minute lovefest of Hekker during the pregame production meeting.

In case you’re wondering — no, Belichick wasn’t taking a jab at the Rams by praising their punter ahead of their position players. Hekker, in his fifth NFL season, really is that good. He holds the NFL record for net punting average — 44.2 yards in 2013 — and this season Hekker is averaging 45.8, which would shatter his record. Of Hekker’s 72 punts this season, 40 have landed inside the 20, only one went for a touchback, and his long is 78 yards.

And Belichick really does love punters. He has a great appreciation for the six special teams phases of the game, and puts more thought into kicking and punting than most of us put into anything.

“One of the things he stresses is, it’s just as important and a part of the game as offense and defense can be,” Patriots punter Ryan Allen said. “It’s kind of a boom-or-bust play. In any of those six phases, something drastic can happen. He knows how important that is, and he’s kind of relayed that to us, and it’s fun.”

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Johnny Hekker has pinned 40 of his 72 punts this season inside the 20-yard line.Steven Senne/AP

Over the years, Belichick has casually mentioned some of his favorite punters at his news conferences: Dave Jennings, the Giants’ great punter of the late 1970s and early ’80s; Sean Landeta, who punted for 24 years, including several with Belichick in New York; Ray Guy, whose Pro Football Hall of Fame enshrinement became somewhat of a mission of Belichick’s.

“It’s hard for me to believe, that as great as this game is, that there are no punters and one kicker in the Hall of Fame,” Belichick said in 2012. “I don’t know what more Dave Jennings could have done at his position, or Ray Guy, or guys like that. What else would they have had to do? Get a bunch of interceptions?”

Two years later Guy became the only full-time punter to make the Hall.

Belichick’s last six punters have all been left-footed — Allen, Zoltan Mesko, Chris Hanson, Josh Miller, Ken Walter, and Lee Johnson. Belichick called it “a coincidence” in 2013, but extensive data has shown that left-footed punters cause about 1 percent more muffed punts than do right-footed punters, ostensibly because of the reverse rotation of the football.

In 2009, Belichick bemoaned the lack of directional punting in today’s NFL in a story in the New York Times.

“You hardly see anybody go for the sidelines anymore,” Belichick said. “Show me a punter who coffin corners. You don’t see it. They don’t do it.”

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And this year in training camp, when Belichick was asked about defensive end Chris Long and his football family, Belichick’s answer detoured into talk about the Saints’ punter, who came to Foxborough for two days of joint practices.

“Watching [Thomas] Morstead last week, you’re not going to see it any better than that if you put the ball in the JUGS machine,” Belichick said. “It’s a clinic.”

When he goes deep into the intricacies of punting, he actually makes punting sound interesting. One of the first things Belichick looks for in a punter is — no joke — good hands.

Ryan Allen has pinned 17 of his 52 punts this season inside the 20.Barry Chin/Globe Staff

“This might sound stupid, but there’s nothing more important for a punter than hands,” Belichick said in 2013. “Because without good hands, handling the ball and being able to place and drop the ball properly on your foot, no matter how strong your leg is, you’re not going to be able to punt consistently. You can’t really be a good punter, not a really good punter, if you don’t have good hands.”

And Belichick has an appreciation for the varied skill set needed to thrive as an NFL punter.

“It’s not like being on a pitcher’s mound or being on the driving range and just teeing it up with nothing around and throwing the fastball or teeing off whenever you feel like it,” he said. “There’s a lot of situational punting that comes up for the punter that, honestly, nobody ever talks about.”

Belichick’s love of punting goes back, like most of Belichick’s knowledge about football, to his father, the late Steve Belichick. The great David Halberstam book on Belichick, “The Education of a Coach,” stated that “no one coached punters better than [Steve Belichick] did, and long after he retired, other coaches would call him for tips on how to handle their punters, who were somehow believed to be different from all other football players.”

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Bill Belichick was a special teams coach for most of his first decade in the NFL, with the Colts, Lions, Broncos, and Giants. Belichick once relayed that former Giants quarterback Phil Simms used to join in on punting sessions after practice, and had a nice left-footed kick, even though he threw righthanded. Belichick also detailed the work he did with punters during practice.

“You throw them balls that are on the ground — that are left, right, wobbly, whatever it is,” Belichick said. “It’s like watching a major league shortstop do infield. They just scoop it up and throw it and make the play. A good punter handling those kind of balls is key. Of course, there’s nothing more important to a punter than a snapper.”

Don’t get him started on long snapping. We might be here awhile.

EARLY LEADER

Young Winston guiding Bucs

Jeff Gross/Getty Images

Most of us stopped paying attention to the Buccaneers after they began the season 1-3 with blowout losses to the Cardinals and Broncos. But the Bucs are on fire, winners of four straight to improve to 7-5 and grab a share of the NFC South lead with the Falcons.

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And these weren’t easy victories, either. The Bucs crushed the Bears, won tough road games at Kansas City and San Diego, and beat the Seahawks at home.

At the center of it all is second-year quarterback Jameis Winston, who is piecing together his second straight solid season. After throwing for 4,042 yards, 22 touchdowns, and 15 interceptions as a rookie, Winston is on pace for 4,240 yards, 31 touchdowns, and 16 interceptions this year.

Though he’s only 22 years old, Winston has shown tremendous leadership. Last month, Winston wrote a letter that was typed up and given to every player in the locker room. Winston then read the letter, which was about being grateful and appreciating their opportunity, aloud in a players-only meeting.

With the pack
Where Winston ranks statistically among other quarterbacks in the league.
Player Team Comp % Yds TD Int Rate
Drew Brees NO 71.4 3,913 30 11 105
Aaron Rodgers GB 64.5 3,283 29 7 98.5
Matt Ryan ATL 68.6 3,813 27 7 112.3
Marcus Mariota TEN 64.3 2,998 25 8 101.9
Philip Rivers SD 62.6 3,353 25 14 93
Ben Roethlisberger PIT 65.0 3,034 25 8 99.4
Derek Carr OAK 63.5 3,492 24 5 96
Jameis Winston TB 61.7 3,180 23 12 90
Andrew Luck IND 64.0 3,105 23 8 98.3
Eli Manning NYG 63.1 3,097 22 12 88.3
Kirk Cousins WAS 67.5 3,811 21 8 99.6
Matthew Stafford DET 67.2 3,224 21 5 100.5
Blake Bortles JAX 58.4 2,930 20 15 76.9
Tom Brady NE 68.9 2,470 19 1 113.1
Dak Prescott DAL 67.9 2,974 19 2 108.6
Source: NFL.com

“Who does that?” said safety Keith Tandy via the Tampa Bay Times. “Who sits down and writes a letter? And a guy that young. It shows you his maturity. It makes us respect him even more, and I didn’t think we could respect him more.”

The most promising sign for Winston: This is the second year in a row that he has improved in the second half of the season. His completion percentage, yards per attempt, and touchdown-interception ratio improved dramatically in November compared with his first two months.

Last year, the Buccaneers made a similar run, improving to 6-6 before losing their last four games and costing coach Lovie Smith his job. This year, Winston and the Bucs look primed to atone for last year’s collapse.

“You can see it — the way he’s handling himself in the huddle, the way he’s handling himself on the practice field. It’s truly remarkable,” veteran receiver Vincent Jackson said recently. “He seems like an 18-year vet already and again, this guy is just starting. He’s going to have a great, great, long career.”

DOLLARS AND SENSE

Patriots spend money wisely

The NFL Players Association tweeted an interesting chart as it pertains to the Patriots and the requirements for spending cash on players.

The chart is in reference to the “89 percent rule” that is part of the collective bargaining agreement — over two four-year periods (2013-16 and 2017-20), teams must spend 89 percent of the salary cap. League-wide, the requirement is 95 percent in cash for the same periods.

Per the chart, only one team is currently not compliant — the Raiders, who are about $2 million under the threshold. The Raiders have until March to spend the extra cash, and the problem can easily be solved with a contract extension for one of their many young stars. Overall, the league has spent 98.26 percent of the cap, so the NFLPA is happy.

But guess which team has spent the third-lowest amount of cash over this four-year period — yes, the perennial 12-4, AFC Championship game-reaching Patriots, who have spent $500,083,836 in cash over the last four years. The 89 percent threshold is $493,549,500, so the Patriots are in compliance. The Panthers are the only other team to spend less.

Now, 2013-16 is somewhat of a random timeframe, and doesn’t take into account any large contracts the Patriots handed out in 2011 or 2012, for example. And the Patriots may not be done spending, as they also have until March to spend cash that counts toward 2016.

But this chart is an eye-opener, reinforcing the notion that the Patriots spend their money wisely, and are lucky to have a star quarterback who doesn’t push for every last dollar. In the AFC East, the Jets spent $533 million, the Bills spent $573 million, and the Dolphins almost $578 million in the same time frame, with no playoff appearances.

ETC.

Weddle likes what he sees

Al Bello/Getty Images

The Patriots drafted a safety with the 24th overall pick in 2007. Ravens safety Eric Weddle knows right off the top of his head who it was.

Brandon Meriweather,” he reminded New England reporters on a conference call, who were trying to remember who the pick was that year.

Weddle was picked 37th that year by the Chargers. He ended up making three Pro Bowls, was twice named first team All-Pro, and led the NFL in interceptions in 2011.

Meriweather? He actually made two Pro Bowls with the Patriots, but lasted just four seasons as they opted not to re-sign him in 2010.

“I could’ve seen myself fitting into there seamlessly,” Weddle said. “And I’m wondering why they didn’t just draft me in ’07. I could’ve still been playing there now.”

Weddle signed with the Ravens this past offseason after his relationship with the Chargers disintegrated in a contract squabble. Weddle would’ve been a perfect fit in the Patriots’ locker room, and acknowledged the idea intrigued him and they had some talks last spring.

“Obviously, I was interested. Have nothing but high regard, respect, and admiration and envy of the success of the New England Patriots over the years,” he said. “Love the way they play, love the foundation, love everything about it. So it’s definitely on my radar. There were talks both ways, it just didn’t end up — I’m good buddies with Patrick Chung, I grew up with him. And Devin [McCourty] is one of the best to play, so I don’t know if it would’ve worked out personnel wise.”

Extra points

Jonathan Ferrey/Getty Images

The Cam Newton “benching” story seems absurd on its face — Panthers coach Ron Rivera benched his star quarterback for wearing a turtleneck and not a tie? But it sounds like this wasn’t Newton’s first time pushing the rules, and Rivera risked losing the locker room if he allowed Newton to keep getting away with it. And while the offense is about as minor as it gets, it’s amazing that it resorted to the coach publicly humiliating Newton, the $100 million man and face of the franchise. One aspect that makes Tom Brady an all-time great is the way he sets an example for younger players with his work ethic and training . . . The Dolphins’ Jarvis Landry has the record for receptions through three NFL seasons with 269. No. 2 on that list is his former LSU teammate, Odell Beckham, with 262. That was quite a receiving corps the Tigers had in 2013 . . . NFL owners will gather Wednesday in Dallas for their first set of meetings since the start of the season. The main focus will be on the stadium situations in San Diego, Oakland, Los Angeles, and Las Vegas, with updates from the broadcasting, international, and football operations departments. Despite all the talk this season about falling ratings and bad football on Thursday nights, here’s betting that the owners will throw some cold water on making drastic moves such as eliminating “TNF” or cutting commercials out of the broadcasts, as fans are hoping. I’m expecting smaller developments, such as the ways the league is embracing technology and looking for new ways to broadcast games . . . The Browns have four games left to avoid the second 0-16 season in NFL history, starting Sunday against Cincinnati. The gallows humor is strong in Cleveland, where fans are planning a parade for 0-16 and wondering if the Browns would lose to Alabama. “Oh, man, this is terrible,” cornerback Joe Haden said via the Cleveland Plain Dealer. “You’re talking about an 0-16 parade. It’s very, very tough and it hits you right between the eyes because I’m on the team, there’s something I can do about it, and that’s why I’m playing. The worst thing I’ve ever seen is us getting beat, 34-0, to ’Bama. Once I’ve seen that, there was just nothing else to talk about.” . . . Jets owner Woody Johnson would be crazy to listen to the fans and tabloids and fire Todd Bowles after just two seasons. The Jets took a big step back this year after overachieving last year, but come on — his quarterback was Ryan Fitzpatrick, and the roster needs a major overhaul. Then again, these are the Jets. Making impulsive, irrational decisions is what they do best . . . Speaking of the Jets, their quarterback now is Bryce Petty, a guy who was “fat and overweight” as a rookie, receiver Brandon Marshall said. Petty also admitted that he learned how to read defenses last year by playing Madden video games. Good luck, Jets.

Passing troubles

The San Francisco 49ers had difficulty handling the elements and the Chicago Bears in their loss last Sunday. They became the fourth team in the last 10 years to compile 10 net passing yards or fewer in a game.

Compiled by Michael Grosi

Ben Volin can be reached at ben.volin@globe.com. Follow him on Twitter @BenVolin. Material from interviews, wire services, other beat writers, and league and team sources was used in this report.