When Buffalo Bills kicker Tyler Bass landed on Injured Reserve, it was fair to be a bit concerned about the team’s kicking game. Signing with Buffalo just three days before the start of the regular season, Matt Prater has been nothing short of impressive in relief of Bass.
Prater’s game-winning field goal against the Baltimore Ravens was clutch, as was a 52-yarder in Week 2 against the New York Jets. Don’t get me wrong, the points are fantastic, but there’s another area where the kicker has stood
out to me in such a positive light, that I’m starting to think “MVP” this season might be shorthand for “Matt Venerable Prater.”
Kickoff magic!
Let’s start off with a simple list of Matt Prater’s kickoffs, focusing on the landing spot.
- M.Prater kicks 55 yards from BUF 35 to NYJ 10. I.Davis to NYJ 36 for 26 yards (R.Gilliam; J.Andreessen).
- M.Prater kicks 63 yards from BUF 35 to NYJ 2. I.Williams to NYJ 19 for 17 yards (S.Franklin).
- M.Prater kicks 63 yards from BUF 35 to NYJ 2. I.Williams to NYJ 25 for 23 yards (S.Franklin). NYJ-F.Mauigoa was injured during the play.
- M.Prater kicks 60 yards from BUF 35 to NYJ 5. I.Davis to NYJ 32 for 27 yards (D.Hamlin).
- M.Prater kicks 61 yards from BUF 35 to NYJ 4. I.Davis to NYJ 37 for 33 yards (K.Jenkins).
- M.Prater kicks 66 yards from BUF 35 to NYJ -1. I.Davis to NYJ 19 for 20 yards (S.Franklin; K.Jenkins).
- M.Prater kicks 60 yards from BUF 35 to NYJ 5. I.Davis to NYJ 33 for 28 yards (J.Andreessen).
Of Prater’s seven kickoffs, only two were what I’d consider to be less than excellent from the information above. Five of them dropped within the five-yard line. The kick that landed at the 10 isn’t great but not horrible either. The kick to the -1 could have been downed to get it at the 35-yard line, but luckily wasn’t. Though maybe luck isn’t the right word. Let’s take a look.
To address that comment about luck, the ball was so close to the line, it puts a lot of stress on the returner. If you’re not 100% sure the ball is going to land in the end zone, you don’t want to be the guy who let’s it hit the turf in the field of play or downs the ball at the one-yard line.
So “luck” isn’t exactly right. While technically it could have been downed, there’s a good chance it’ll be returned at this exact spot. Now that we’ve gotten that out of the way…
Did you see a pattern? Five of the seven kickoffs were to the same corner. If this were punting, it’d be called a “coffin corner” punt. I’m super excited. I’ve been advocating for the coffin corner kickoff for FOUR years. FOUR YEARS I’ve been asking for this and Matt Venerable Prater arrives and delivers on my dream. Here’s the article I wrote when Buffalo tinkered with the idea in the 2021 preseason.
In that article I cite hang time as a reason to do this, letting the kicking team have more time to reach the landing spot. That’s no longer a consideration as players can’t move until the ball is fielded anyway. However, I didn’t mention one other reason I love the coffin corner kickoff in that article from years ago so here it is now.
Kicking to the center of the field allows the returner to try to locate a soft spot any place on the field. By kicking to the corner, you effectively limit the size of the field, making gap discipline a little easier for the kicking team. That’s my theory at least, and so far Prater and the Bills seem to be agreeing with me in 2025.
I like that there were two change up kicks to a different spot on the field. That creates just a little doubt and puts another option on film to force opposing teams to study that too. Don’t be surprised to see other wrinkles tossed in. So far Prater’s only touchback came on a kick against the Ravens that looked very similar to the -1 yard-line kick seen above. Except that one was left side and Baltimore dared to down.
The main thing I’m loving is the consistency so far. Prater’s kick to the 10 against the Jets is the shortest he’s had so far, and kicking to the five or within is pretty much the norm for Prater this season. The little gains this should help create in the opponent’s starting field position could add up.
