Why Do Kickers Take Steps?

Turn on the TV most any Saturday or Sunday in the fall and you’ll see a number of field goal kickers trying extra points, field goals and kick offs.  In most cases, the uninitiated might ask himself, “why do kickers take steps?

Why do kickers take steps?The first time I saw this strange pre-kick ritual, I thought it was pretty odd behavior as well!

After all, isn’t kicking a football similar to swinging a golf club?  We don’t see Tiger Woods taking methodical steps backward before a tee box drive do we?

Well, there is one slight difference.  Golfers don’t have to ‘run’ into their swing like kickers do (unless they are imitating Happy Gilmore).

The fact is, kickers, whether kicking a short approach field goal OR a longer distance approach kick off, must utilize the momentum they generate as they approach the ball to kick it.

This means that they must stand at least several feet behind the ball and move toward it before they actually strike with the foot.

So, if you need to begin each kick from several feet behind the ball, why not just walk back at an angle and eyeball your kick like a soccer player taking a corner kick?

Sure you can do this, several successful kickers have done this their entire careers.

So, what’s the issue with not taking steps?

The problem with this approach is that even if we take say, three steps back at an ‘estimated’ angle (based on feel), this can get tricky from the hashes with various angles created by distance from the field goal posts.

Football Kicking Holder: ColossusThe fact is, we actually want to make as many kicks as possible, right?  Well, the best way for most kickers to kick the same way every time is to realize that the kick actually starts the second we begin to back up in preparation to kick.

I’d venture to say that most kicks that are missed, are actually missed due to simple mathematics mistakes.  That is, if you are exactly 4.5 feet behind the ball when you normally kick your BEST kick, then starting 5 feet behind the ball for your game winner might not be the best idea.

So, the short answer to “why do kickers take steps?”, is to be more consistent.  From start to finish, steps help us kick the same way each time.  They help us start from the same distance, the same angle, each and every kick.

For more information about steps and how they help us solidify proper balance, alignment and contact, join our video based training site today!

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