It's been a long fall for Vanderjagt

....he still kicked half the other games outside. I always equated kicking to a golf swing. You lose your confidence, you're done. The interesting thing with Vande is I don't think he ever dwelled on a kick; he had the mentality to forget (probably because he is such a mental case). To say he wasn't that good in the first place is pretty unfair. Not missing a kick the entire year is really incredible.

There are other dome teams?? Like two......you make it sound like there are about 10 dome teams. The guy WAW an excellent kicker. After missing that kick v. Pitt (which was INDOORS by the way) he has just lost his confidence. We see this happen to athletes and sometimes they don't recover. But I repeat, at one time, he was the best in the league.

After having watched Vandy kick for my Colts for 9 years, I feel I am a bit of an authority on the guy. Some of the comments in here have been good, and ETVal wrote a good summary of Vandy's fall from grace. One small correction: Vandy's missed kick against the Steelers was not in the AFC Championship game, but in the second round.

The one thing I'll shoot down right now is the whole "He only kicks well in domes" thing. That's bunk. Like SBakerTheTouchdownMaker said, I saw him win a huge game in Denver kicking a 50 yard FG in the final seconds to win back in 2002. It was a blizzard out. Vandy also spent much of his early career in Canada, kicking in weather so cold that would make Bart Starr piss his pants. So no, it's not kicking FGs in domes or outdoors that has teams avoiding Vandy like the plague.

It's the fact that you, myself, or maybe even your grandmother can kick-off longer, farther, and with better accuracy than Vandy can.

Vanderjagt is TERRIBLE at kicking off. He can't directional kick. He can't get touchbacks. He doesn't kick the ball high enough. He sucks, sucks, SUCKS at kickoffs. Often, he'll complain he has to do it, and then turn right around and complain that your GM brought in another kicker to kick-off because Vandy complains about having to kick-off.

That, and he'll call your franchise QB a loser on television, and then wonder what all the hub-bub is about. Idiot kicker, indeed.

The only thing that kept Vandy employed was the fact that he was automatic... somewhat. While his accuracy numbers can't be denied, the guy has choked BIG TIME in big money games. He was paid, and paid well, to do one thing: Make the fking kick. And while he would make the kicks that seem to boggle the mind (50-yarder in blizzard to beat Denver; 58-yarder in Miami that made Jimmy Johnson retire, again) he is notorious for missing the "easy" kicks in the big games that count the most. Here are some examples:  

• 2001 playoffs against Miami: It's over-time. Manning drives the Colts down into FG range. It's about a 41 yarder. Vandy makes the kick, the Colts win. That simple. This is routine. 41 yards in Miami is a gimme. It is what vanderjadt is paid to make. Result: wide left. Dolphins take the ball, drive it all the way back down the field and score a TD. Colts lose.
• 2002 playoffs against the NY Jets: The Colts lost 41-0 to that Jets team in 2002. However, before NY unloaded on the Colts in the second and third quarters, the Colts had some chances to get some points on the board and drastically change the momentum of the game. Manning drove the team, on a sloppy, muddy field, into FG range. 40 yarder. Vandy shanked it. The missed FG took all the momentum out of Indy. Jets took the ball and scored a TD.
• 2005 playoffs against the Steelers: This playoff game nearly killed me and every other Indy and Pittsburgh fan. We all know the circumstances. Colts get the ball back on a choke job fumble by Jerome Bettis, who was trying to score in the wanning seconds rather than fall down and eat clock. Colts get the ball into FG range. It is a 46-yarder in Vandy's home dome. This kick is what he is paid to make. Result: We all know.

So, while Mike is often very accurate, he will also often cost you big games by missing gimme FGs he should make. Sometimes, his confidence transforms into cockiness, and his antics wear on a team very quickly. Bottom line: There's a very good reason Vanderjagt is unemployed, and he should take the hint. Retire Mike. You've made a lot of money and you should be well off.

The Giants are wise to avoid Mike.