Patriots Gridiron News 11/4: It Could Come Down to Stephen Gostkowski

Oct 2, 2016; Foxborough, MA, USA; New England Patriots kicker Stephen Gostkowski (3) sits along the sidelines during the second half of the Buffalo Bills 16-0 win over the New England Patriots at Gillette Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Winslow Townson-USA TODAY Sports
Oct 2, 2016; Foxborough, MA, USA; New England Patriots kicker Stephen Gostkowski (3) sits along the sidelines during the second half of the Buffalo Bills 16-0 win over the New England Patriots at Gillette Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Winslow Townson-USA TODAY Sports /
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New England Patriots kicker Stephen Gostkowski is still looking to find his way back to consistency in the kicking game.

While all the talk has been on the defensive struggles and the superb play of Tom Brady, the New England Patriots season could rest on the foot of veteran kicker Stephen Gostkowski.

If that seems like too much pressure to put on a kicker, just remember the Patriots loss in the AFC Championship came down to a missed extra point by Gostkowski.  Speaking of that game, the Patriots leading all-time scorer has uncharacteristically missed kicks so far this season.

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Those missed kicks haven’t hurt the team so far, but I he doesn’t find his kicking stroke, a game (maybe even a very important game) could result in a loss.  The good news is that Gostkowski has appeared to find that kicking stroke in the team’s 41-25 victory in Buffalo last Sunday.  He hit all five extra points and knocked through two field goals from 51 and 32 yards at New Era Field.

The performance drew excitement at of teammates and his coaches.

"“Man, we’re very excited for Steve,” special teams coach Joe Judge said via the Providence Journal. “I’ll tell you what, nobody works harder than Steve. Nobody prepares better than Steve. We have all the confidence in the world in Steve. He’s done it consistently for so long in this league. There is nobody I’d rather play with and he’s our guy.”"

Stephen Gostkowski has been a big part of the team’s success over the past few seasons.  The All-pro kicker has previously maintained a consistency that makes him one of the more proficient kickers in the league.  The Patriots need him to find that consistency again because there may just be a game that comes down to a field goal.

So hopefully Gostkowski has fixed the mechanical and/or mental issues that have stayed with him since that AFC Championship game.

Matt Lengel back in the Bay State:  New Patriots tight end Matt Lengel hopes to enjoy his second tour of Massachusetts.  The product of Eastern Kentucky actually played for Northeastern’s final football team back in 2009 before the football program ended.  He hopes this time around will result in a longer stay.

"“I loved it. I enjoyed it,” Lengel said of the city of Boston.  “The city was great. Right where Northeastern is was a great area of Boston. It was exciting. My parents loved it. They loved coming up to games and everything and fell in love with the area.”"

Next: Which Clay Buchholz Will Show Up In 2017?

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