Packers Question of the day - Will Masthay find his way onto the Roster?

The Packers have never been too well-rounded in the punting department. Even with native competition of Peter Mortell being brought into camp, Tim Masthay still can't find his own edge to form consistency.

Not that Mortell has been much better, but many seem to cheer on the former Minnesota Gopher. Is it because he's actually been out-performing Masthay, who's been booting the ball in Green Bay since 2010? Or is it because the fanbase wants and craves change?

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Zachary Jacobson is a staff writer/reporter for Cheesehead TV. He's the voice of The Leap on iTunes and can be heard on The Scoop KLGR 1490 AM every Saturday morning. He's also a contributor on the Pack-A-Day Podcast. He can be found on Twitter via @ZachAJacobson or contacted through email at [email protected].

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Comments (26)

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NashvilleCheesehead's picture

August 22, 2016 at 09:24 am

Watch the extra points and field goals. Mortell has slight edge with his leg, but the key is his hands.

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NickPerry's picture

August 22, 2016 at 07:13 pm

Are you talking about holding for Crosby? He can hold for FG's, no problem with that.

http://www.espn.com/video/clip?id=14339911

Still can't believe they have such a thing myself.

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Amanofthenorth's picture

August 22, 2016 at 07:34 pm

That was his idea and a joke and ESPN carried it through. Now how about a hot snapper of the year?

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NickPerry's picture

August 23, 2016 at 05:28 am

LMAO.......Man am I gullible...Then why didn't TT try and sign the UDFA Punter from Utah? Tom Hackett, he won the Ray Guy Award last season and was waived by the Jets on 7/28/16 to make room for Fitzpatrick. He's from Australia and a FA. He's a Rugby Style kicker who can take a snap and kick like a traditional punter or doing the Rugby style kick but he can put it inside the 10 yard line with regularity. Must not be able to hold cuz he sure as hell can punt.

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Hematite's picture

August 23, 2016 at 07:23 am

If this competition is even close, I think the nod goes to Masthay and his chemistry with Crosby as a holder.
That being said, I'm really pulling for Mortell to win the punting job.
I've seen enough of Masthay!

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Big_Mel_75's picture

August 22, 2016 at 10:16 am

NO. Time to move on!

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lucky953's picture

August 22, 2016 at 10:39 am

Already stated, but the team needs better punting. Period. They've given Masthay a lot of time and he's been just ok, but in "Masthay vs the Field", we're not winning the field position battle. That inevitably converts to points differential, and we've seen how critical that becomes in the post season.

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Ferrari Driver's picture

August 22, 2016 at 10:47 am

Both are well below the NFL average.

The waiver wire my provide a better option, but probably not.

Time to use one of those 7th round compensation picks on a punter.

Fans have had to endure these line drive punts and shanks long enough.

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AgrippaLII's picture

August 22, 2016 at 09:46 pm

I didn't know Mortell had an NFL average...yet.

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cuervo's picture

August 22, 2016 at 10:51 am

We've seen the best of Masthay, and his best wasn't ever very good. Mortell certainly has a better leg, and has more upside. It's an easy choice.

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SpudRapids's picture

August 22, 2016 at 11:22 am

Let's not forget upside... I think we all know what Mastay's ceiling and he has hit it. Mortell on the other hand hasn't honed in his skill yet and will continue to develop. I think we need to watch the directional punting to determine who is going to earn a roster spot. Placing a 40 yard punt into the coffin corner is very important and if Mortell can edge Mastay in that department I say give him the nod.

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SpudRapids's picture

August 22, 2016 at 02:31 pm

According to McGinn: "it’s possible neither one will be in Jacksonville on opening day."

http://www.packersnews.com/story/sports/nfl/packers/mcginn/2016/08/17/mc...

What is up with McGinn... i just don't follow his logic anymore. Just look at some of these quotes:

"If Ted Thompson is of a mind, and usually he isn’t, the Green Bay Packers might have a chance to acquire a draft choice or two 2 1/2 weeks from now when NFL teams reach the 53-man roster limit."

He then says this:

"As probably one of the league’s best and deepest teams, the Packers stand a better chance than most to trade one or more surplus players for draft choices."

So he claims that Thompson isn't of mind but he can turn around and say he has assembled one of the best and deepest teams. What is this guys smoking?

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croatpackfan's picture

August 22, 2016 at 02:43 pm

Wow, all at sudden holding for Crosby is not important... Ha, ha, ha...
That says all of arguments of some of you...

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Since'61's picture

August 22, 2016 at 11:37 am

My question on this punting issue is where are the ST coaches? Can't they help one of these guys punt more effectively? There may not be any hope left for Masthay since he's been with the Packers for a while but in any case I would hope that the Packers ST coaches could have more of an impact, otherwise what are they there for? Thanks, Since '61

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NickPerry's picture

August 23, 2016 at 05:37 am

Hey Since '61... The Packers ST Coaches have their fingerprints all over Masthays career. He started in 2010 and has gotten WORSE just about every year....Just Joking.. Sort of

BUT

Last season though the Packers allowed just a 4.2 yard average on Punt Returns. Talk about the Janis effect.

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MarkinMadison's picture

August 22, 2016 at 02:04 pm

We're all working with incomplete information here - unless someone has all the data from practice. I agree with everyone above who said that Masthay is unlikely to get better. He's had some just brutal moments. It's not about craving change. It's about recognizing that a guy has hit is ceiling. So may the best player win, but if it is a virtual tie then factor in that one of those players has already had several years to show you what he's got.

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tobinrote's picture

August 22, 2016 at 02:21 pm

i can never forget that without masthay's punting in the championship game against the Bears we would not have won. but where is that guy now? what happened to him?

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SteveCheez's picture

August 22, 2016 at 06:20 pm

Let's not pull another Frosty the Punt Man move again.

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SteveCheez's picture

August 22, 2016 at 06:21 pm

It seems that we just don't put a lot of priority on having a top punter.
How do you explain that the Raiders have had the best punters in the league for most of the last 40 years?

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NickPerry's picture

August 23, 2016 at 05:42 am

They play in the AFC West. 8 games at home, another in San Diego, and one in Denver gives them 10 games in almost perfect punting conditions. Denver might be cold when they play at times but the altitude makes up for that.

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Amanofthenorth's picture

August 22, 2016 at 07:29 pm

Which ever one of the punters doesn't make the team, I am sure the Packers can trade him................lol. I kill me

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Oppy's picture

August 23, 2016 at 11:12 am

There's a lot of talk about how Mathsay was never any good. That's simply not true. There was a time not long ago we all called him the Ginger Wolverine and he made key directional punts, or used an aussie style "kill" kick to drop a ball on the 1 yard line like a flat rock. He was never a big leg, but he was a competitive punter that used to come up with the right punt when needed.

I don't know what happened to that guy, but we haven't seen him in a while.

The biggest take away from this punting competition is that Mathsay isn't stepping up to the challenge of competition in crunch time. This is an NFL veteran punter, His job is on the line, and his performance is luke-warm at best. That is not a good sign for a guy who will be called upon from time to time to make punts out of the endzone with a full out rush coming and the potential game on the line.

At least with Mortell (who did seem to step up to the challenge vs. the Raiders) we are seeing a young punter who is keeping up with a seasoned veteran for a chance at winning a roster spot and has the potential to improve his leg strength and technique over the next many years. With many other punters, we'd have to weigh in the fact they're punting in spring, and Mathsay is cold-weather proven, while the competition is is a very daunting question mark in the elements. Not so with Mortell, who has plenty of experience punting outside in the elements and cold from college.

I am fully wiling to wait until the end to see this thing play itself out, and happy to live with the decision... but I don't like the psychological implications of a veteran punter not responding to the pressure of a young punter making a bid for his job. That just doesn't sit well with me.

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Amanofthenorth's picture

August 23, 2016 at 07:14 pm

I don't ever remember masthay being good at pinning teams in their own end.

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IcemanBT's picture

August 23, 2016 at 11:28 am

the problem with masthy is the way he punts in games. his directional punting is really bad and it looked about half the time on other punts that he just flat out made a bad punt, all to often he gave the other team a short field to work with. yeah i think we know what we have with him, and it's not good anymore. mortel being a young rookie and holding his own against a vetern says a lot. plus the kid has the upside of being able to be coached up, masthy ....not so much.

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Ryan Brunner's picture

August 23, 2016 at 12:25 pm

After 2015, Masthay shouldn't be on the roster. I was calling for his head all year. Time for new blood.

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4EVER's picture

August 23, 2016 at 04:31 pm

Just a tidbit from last year...

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/2623989-br-nfl-1000-ranking-the-top-3...

Bleacher Report ranking the top 32 punters of 2015...and what do you know, Tim Masthay does not crack the top 32. I'll repeat that for good measure, Tim Masthay didn't crack the top 32. It would be hysterical if weren't for him being a Packer. Please everyone, control your laughter.

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