Chris Tabor likened kickers to golfers during a wide-ranging interview on Cleveland Browns Daily Tuesday afternoon. And the Browns special teams coordinator suggested that the best kickers have an awfully lot of different clubs in their bags.
So when Tabor was asked about Cleveland's second-year kicker Travis Coons, whose promising rookie season was also met with struggles in connecting from long-range, the sixth-year veteran coach had another golf analogy in store.
"It's the golf swing," Tabor said, "I've got to get it up quicker but at the same time it has to still travel."
Tabor continued, "They still got to hit the same ball, sometimes the kickers have the mentality that when I get way back I feel like I just got to drive the this thing to get it there when really, just hit your ball and you'll be fine."
Tabor, who's entering his sixth season with the Browns, has seen Cleveland's special teams as one of the league's better ones since he joined the staff in 2011.
The Browns hold the NFL's highest punt return average from 2011-15 (11.3 yards) and Coons made 18 straight field goals to set a league record for the most consecutive field goals to begin a career.
But Cleveland had difficulty at times making deep field goals and, perhaps more specifically, ensuring they weren't blocked at the line of scrimmage.
"I think it's a little bit of obviously getting more underneath the ball," Tabor said when asked what can be fixed in the kicking game.
The Browns saw four long balls blocked, including one that was returned for a game-winning touchdown against the Baltimore Ravens last season.
Tabor didn't play down the concern and offered Coons -- who made 28-of-32 attempts last season -- a vote of confidence.
"Trust me, he has plenty of leg. I've seen him hit plenty of 50-yard plus field goals in practice," Tabor said. "Obviously we know, it's documented, it's on tape. We've got to improve that area and I believe he'll get that done."
