Steelers kicker Boswell not surprised by success
PITTSBURGH — Nearly four months on the job and there is still no cowboy hat and Lone Star flag to be seen adorning Chris Boswell’s locker stall. Not yet anyway.
But the mountie’s hat and Canadian red maple leaf that hangs two stalls over from Boswell’s is a constant reminder of who the Steelers kicker is or, at least, was supposed to be.
It’s Boswell’s job for now, and the Steelers certainly have no complaints, but his future after this season ends — whenever that might be — is still to be determined. Whether that’s Boswell or Shaun Suisham is one dilemma the Steelers won’t mind.
For now, the Steelers are enjoying what they do have, and that’s a 24-year-old Texan who has made a compelling argument for his employment beyond 2015. He’s converted 26 of 28 field goals (2 of 2 from 50-plus yards) and is 22 of 23 at the NFL’s new 33-yard extra points.
“I’m just glad I’ve proven myself,” Boswell said Wednesday. “I knew what I was capable of. I didn’t really surprise myself at all. I’ve been working for so long, doing this. And after not kicking anywhere last year, but I’m still sticking with it.”
After what the Steelers have went through and had to pay for a serviceable kicker this season, including dealing a sixth-round pick and picking up $2.5 million of Josh Scobee’s contract from Jacksonville, they will gladly take Boswell’s numbers. His 92.9 percent success rate on field goals is a Steelers rookie record, and his 100 points trail only New England’s Stephen Gostkowski (104) among all NFL kickers.
Not bad for a guy who was the Steelers’ fourth option at kicker since the start of training camp, only winning the job after Suisham suffered a season-ending ACL tear on the negligent turf in Canton, after Garrett Hartley went down with a hamstring injury in the fourth preseason game at Buffalo and after Scobee struggled mightily.
Had Scobee not self-immolated in a Thursday night game against Baltimore in Week 4, missing two field goals of 41 and 49 yards, Boswell doesn’t know where he’d be.
But he does know where he was that night on Oct. 1 and it wasn’t watching Scobee and the Steelers’ 23-20 loss to the Ravens in overtime.
“No, I was hanging out with friends that night,” Boswell said. “I really didn’t watch too much football, but I had kept in shape and kept kicking.
“I had a lot of people inform me about the game, and the next day I got the call. I was at my grandparents’ house. A lot of my family was in town and I went over to see them and, literally, as soon as I got there I got a call from my agent and basically had to leave. I was there for three minutes maybe.”
After catching a flight to Pittsburgh later that night, life has been a whirlwind for Boswell since. He won the job for the Steelers’ vacancy in an audition alongside veterans Randy Bullock and Kai Forbath at Heinz Field on Oct. 3 and hasn’t looked back.
Though slight in build at 6-foot-2 and 185, the Steelers have been impressed not only with the strength of Boswell’s leg but also between the ears. On his first day of practice, the first-year kicker had to withstand the scowls and glares of uber-intimidating linebacker James Harrison, who stood nearby, in an attempt to rattle him.
“For a young guy, he doesn’t ride the emotional rollercoaster,” said coach Mike Tomlin. “I like his game day demeanor.
“From time to time, I’ll make eye contact with him and check on him just to see how he’s processing it all. He’s a very level-headed and even-keeled young man.”
The soft-spoken Boswell appreciates the compliment but says he hasn’t changed his approach: “I just stay calm, keep myself relaxed.” That demeanor should only serve him well as the Steelers enter a critical juncture in the season and kicking in the playoffs a distinct possibility.
While the weather this week in Pittsburgh has been unseasonably warm, more like that of his native Fort Worth, he knows that is likely to change as well. Kicking in inclement weather isn’t something he had a lot of experience with in high school or at Rice University.
“We didn’t get snow down south, really,” said Boswell, who has had a pedestrian 24 of 64 (42.8 percent) of his kickoffs go for touchbacks. “I don’t think it’s going to change kicking too much. Just don’t think about it and do what you always do.”
What Boswell does in the postseason, should there be one for Pittsburgh, could answer what the Steelers’ long-term plans are at the kicker position.
Suisham, one of the most accurate kickers in franchise history, signed a four-year contract extension in August 2014 that could pay him $12.75 million through 2018. If nothing else, Boswell would be a cheaper alternative. He is signed to a two-year, $960,000 contract.
Suisham, who turns 34 next week, has remained a regular presence in the Steelers’ locker room and on the sidelines. The affable Canadian, part of the close-knit fraternity of kickers, has willingly served as a mentor.
“It’s awesome to talk to him a lot,” Boswell said. ” He’s been in the league for (12 years). He’s obviously successful at what he does. Definitely a guy I look up to. I pick his brain as much as I can because you don’t get that chance very often.”
No, chances like that don’t come often, and there won’t be one next year as the Steelers won’t carry two kickers on the roster.
While there are obviously far more pressing concerns than who the kicker will be next season, Boswell is well aware that he could be in competition with Suisham for a roster spot in training camp.
“Getting to compete with him is going to be fun,” Boswell said. “I don’t think it’s going to be a bad rivalry or anything like that. I think we’re both good guys. Just keep kicking and see who wins.”