With the end of week 12, we are now more than halfway through the 21-week 2022 CFL Season. Let's discuss 50+ yard field goals, statistics, Power Rankings, and more in this week's write-up;
Kickers
Kickers played well this week, but only 1 has impressed me enough to climb the ladder. Collectively, kickers went 18/19 (94.7%) on field goals and 17/18 (94.4%) on Converts. This is the second-best week Kickers have had since Week 1. This is also the fourth consecutive week where kickers have not been 100% on PATs. Let's discuss how the players performed with a look at my (un)Official Week 12 CFL Kicker Power Rankings;
Working top-down;
Rene Paredes (CGY) made 5 kicks (2 field goals and 3 PATs) to cement himself at the top of our Weekly Power Rankings. His most impressive kick was a 47 yard field goal.
Brett Lauther (SSK) had a good game. He was given 3 opportunities to put points on the board and made all 3 of those field goals, though none were longer than 22 yards out. He also went 2/2 on PATs. With these 3 makes, he helped raise 600$ for the KidSport & Foundation. You love to see it.
Sean Whyte (BC) also played well connecting on all 3 of his field goals. His longest was from 42 yards out. He made his only convert attempt.
Seth Small (HAM) is the real winner this week. He went 4/5 on field goals and 1/1 on PATs. After making two, 30 yard field goals, he lined up for a long, long 58 yard field goal. AND HE MADE IT! Not only does he now hold the 2022 CFL Season Record for Longest Field Goal (Edging out Brett Lauther by 1 yard) he also holds the record for Longest Field Goal in Hamilton Tiger-Cat history! Congratulations Seth!
Marc Liegghio (WPG) looked to impress coming off the team's Bye Week after having a rough Week 10. He had missed two makable 30 yard kicks and cost the Bombers the game. This week, he came back and hit 4 converts from 32 yards out, and added a 32 yard field goal for good measure. He certainly tried his best to make up for his Week 10 stat line, but was it enough for the rabid Winnipeg fans?
David Côté (MTL) had a Bye Week this week.
Boris Bede (TOR) had a great game this week, kicking all 3 of his field goals through the uprights. He also hit a Career Long of 56 yards, which puts him in second place for the longest field goal in Argo history. Absolutely wild stuff coming from Boris lately, who is now 11/11 through his last 3 weeks. I hope this upward trend continues.
Sergio Castillo (EDM) was not given opportunities but made it count when it mattered. He hit through a 33 yard field goal and a 32 yard PAT.
Lewis Ward (OTT) started the week off on the wrong foot after missing a 32 yard PAT. I think Redblacks fans all over the Country were holding their breath when he lined up for a 28 yard field goal but could exhale once the ball sailed through the uprights. Ward has a long way to go before I would trust him to make anything more than a PAT.
Punters
This was a good week for punters, and it was tough to rank them. I think at this point in the season, the Top 5 punters in the league could all be argued. Let's discuss how the players performed with a look at my (un)Official Week 12 CFL Punter Power Rankings;
Working top-down;
Richie Leone (OTT) punted 9 times for an Avg. of 46.6 yards and a Net Avg. of 40 yards per punt. He pinned 2 of those punts inside the 20 yard line (1 of which landed inside the 10 yard line). Furthermore, 2 more of those punts went for 50+ yards. This quote (Taken from this article) sums up his performance perfectly "I feel like if I can harness my best self, I'm better than anybody else." (That article is a great read btw, great work Tim!)
Stefan Flintoft (BC) will jump 3 spots into the Second Position after having another insane week. This man punted 8 times. 6 of those were over 50 yards, and 2 were pinned inside the 20 (1 inside the 10). This also marks his fifth consecutive week having a Net Avg. of 40+ yards per punt. He is also tied for most 50+ yard punts with John Haggerty. Great job Stefan!
Marc Liegghio (WPG) only punted 2 times, and they weren't the best racking up 42.5 yards and 32.5 Net yards per punt. I'll give him some leeway as this was his first truly bad punting game in 7 weeks.
Cody Grace (CGY) had a really interesting game. While he only had a Net Avg. of 39 yards per punt, he was able to accumulate 257 yards off of 4 punts, which is good for a staggering 64.3 yards per punt. His most impressive streak during the game came when he punted 74 yards, then he punted 61 yards, then he punted 77 yards. He now sits in Second Place for the Highest Punting Avg. in a Game. WOW. The only reason Grace isn't in the Top 3 is that Liegghio can pin his opponents deep more consistently than Grace. If he works on his direction punting (which I'm sure he is), he will make his way back to glory.
Joseph Zema (MTL) had a Bye Week this week.
John Haggerty (TOR) played well this week, hitting 6 balls for 275 yards (45.8 Avg.) and 249 Net yards (41.5 Net Avg.). He is tied for the lead in terms of punts over 50 yards (28) and punts inside the 10 yard line (5).
Kaare Vedvik (SSK) had a decent game, making 6 punts for 261 yards and 221 Net yards. He is playing much better in the last 2 weeks, forcing 33% of his kicks inside the 20 yard line. I believe he is going to really break away in the second half of the 2022 season.
Michael Domagala (HAM)... sigh. I want Michael to succeed, even if he is a Tiger-Cat, but he doesn't seem to want to. He punted 2 times last week and was only able to get 40.5 yards and 37.5 Net yards per punt. He was lucky one of those punts was bobbled, or else his Net Avg. would have suffered. At this point, the Cats shouldn't have cut Laryea in week 5. He was on pace for a better season, but what do I know?
Jonathan Ryan (EDM) has yet to charm me back into his camp. While it isn't all on the punter, his Net Avg. has been alarmingly low. He punted another 6 times this week for just 203 Net yards (33.8 Net Avg.). He is below average in terms of the number of punts pinned inside the 20 and has officially made the same number of punts as the Ex-Elks punter Matt Mengel. Mengel has a higher Avg. (47.2 > 41.9), and a higher Net Avg. (36.6 > 33.7), and leads in 50+ yard punts (10 > 3). I am not impressed with the Elks and their boneheaded decision-making process. I don't want to rip into Ryan too much, but he really needs to shore some things up.
Thank you for making it this far in my article! Please make sure to let me know what you think. -Big Ups to everyone on Twitter who continues to post great Specialist content. I couldn't do it without you :)
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