Gano cut as Redskins bring in ’10 Pro Bowler
ASHBURN — Billy Cundiff disagreed with Baltimore’s decision Sunday. It didn’t seem that he worried about it, though. If nothing else, Cundiff is a confident kicker, and he anticipated being employed again real soon.
That he landed in Washington was a little surprising, however. The Redskins had just cut kicker Neil Rackers the previous day, with Graham Gano seemingly the winner in the kicker competition. But instead Gano is gone too; Cundiff is in.
Cundiff said he’s not too surprised that they simply signed him and cut Gano without holding any sort of competition, especially with the final preseason game at 7 p.m. on Wednesday vs. Tampa Bay.
“A little bit but to be honest, not really considering the camp I had,” Cundiff said. “I knew a team would jump fast.”
Coach Mike Shanahan sounded lukewarm on Gano’s camp when asked about him Monday and if he had improved from last season, saying, “We’ll find out in game situations how he plays.”
Cundiff was a Pro Bowl kicker in 2010 when he made 26 of 29 field goals. But he slumped to 28 for 37 last year, including five of six misses from beyond 50 yards. However, in those two years he recorded a combined 84 touchbacks. Gano had 41, though the Redskins often had him kick off directionally.
For his career, Cundiff has made 76.7 percent of his 172 attempts, including 88 percent from within 40 yards.
Cundiff has struggled from beyond 50 yards in his career, making just five of 19 attempts.
“I don’t feel that is an issue,” he said. “I look at my stats, and they’re not as strong as they should be. … It’s something I made a priority and will continue to work on.”
The one kick Cundiff will be remembered for, at least in Baltimore, occurred in the AFC Championship Game in January. The Ravens rushed their field goal unit into the game for a 32-yard attempt that would have tied the game. Cundiff missed badly to the left.
“I have a lot of kicks under my belt a lot of successful kicks,” Cundiff said. “Those are things I continue to build on. … I won’t let one kick determine how I look at my career.”
