1) Introduction: After the disasters that were Derrick Frost and Jeremy Kapinos, Tim Masthay was a godsend. While Masthay will probably never be known for his big leg, Masthay’s forte is his accuracy and his “Aussie style” punts. Much like long snapper Brett Goode and Mason Crosby, Masthay was also the recipient of a contract extension this year, a 5-year $6.005 million contract, which settles down the kicking unit for the next couple years at least. Masthay has brought back consistency to punts and in stark contrast to the up and down season that fellow kicker Mason Crosby faced this year, Masthay was good from opening day to the divisional championship.
2) Profile:
Timothy James Masthay
- Age: 25
- Born: 03/16/1987, in Pittsburgh, PA
- Height: 6’1″
- Weight: 200
- College: Kentucky
- Rookie Year: 2009
- NFL Experience: 3 years
3) Expectations coming into the season: While Masthay’s rookie season had it’s typicaly ups and downs, Masthay really became a reliable weapon on special teams in 2011 and it was expected that Masthay continue to win the field position battle for the Packers
4) Player’s highlights/low-lights: Masthay punted six times on opening day against the 49ers and pinned them back at their own 20 four times with only one touchback; it could be argued that Masthay was the Packers most consistent weapon that day. Masthay’s worst game was probably week 15 against the Bears where he punted five times, twice went out of bounds and the other 3 were returned for 42 yards, the highest of the season. If you want to talk about Masthay as a passer, he did managed to throw a special team touchdown in week 2 against the Bears but also threw a duck against Jacksonville, so the jury is out on that one.
5) Player’s contribution to the overall team success: As much as fans might not realize it, the Ginger Wolverine is a legitimate weapon on punts. If you don’t believe me, watch some film of Derrick Frost.
6) Player’s contributions in the playoffs: Masthay punted 12 times during the playoffs for a average of 40.8 yards; again that probably one of the lowest average yardages posted by a punter, but Masthay’s ability to place his kicks in good positions for fair catches far outweighs bulk yardage.
Season Report Card:
(A) Level of expectations met during the season
(A) Contributions to team’s overall success.
(A) Contributions to team during the playoffs
Overall Grade: A
——————Thomas Hobbes is a staff writer for Jersey Al’s AllGreenBayPackers.com.
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100% Agree