Kickers are such an important aspect of any NFL season. Long ago, teams rarely thought about trying for three points outside the 40-yard line and instead either punted or went for the first down. But the soccer-style kick added distance to kicks to where coaches were more inclined to try beyond the 50-yard line. Today, every NFL kicker can make a 47-yarder, and most attempt multiple 50-yarders each season.
When Ali Haji-Sheikh was at Michigan, he set multiple career school records and re-defined the kicking game for the Big Ten school. He was taken in the ninth-round of the NFL draft by the Giants and went on to an incredible rookie season in which he made the Pro Bowl and broke Denver Broncos’ kicker Jim Turner’s 1968 record of most field goals in a single season.