It's apparent that Ravens head coach John Harbaugh wants second-year kicker Steve Hauschka to win the place-kicking duties, which is why he has given Hauschka until Thursday night against the Atlanta Falcons to nail down the job.
I suspect that if Hauschka fails, Harbaugh believes veteran Matt Stover has stayed in shape and is good enough to prepare for the opener in a short amount of practice time.Hauschka apparently had taken the lead over rookie Graham Gano, but he couldn't take control of the job against the Carolina Panthers on Saturday night. He missed a 27-yarder against the Panthers in the first quarter but later rebounded with a 38-yard field goal in the third quarter. If he plays well against the Falcons, Hauschka gets the job. If he doesn't, the Ravens will try to re-sign Stover.
The Ravens, though, should just bring back Stover, one of the most reliable kickers in NFL history. If the Ravens have to use two spots on the roster for place kickers, then so be it. Only a year ago, they advanced to the AFC championship game with both Stover and Hauschka on the roster. Harbaugh might be letting his background as a special teams' coach get in his way of being the head coach.
-- Mike Preston
