Billy Cundiff received praise from the Ravens and their coaching staff this offseason but no guarantees for the future.
His steady performance in the final seven regular-season games and perfect postseason has earned him the right to come back and compete for the Ravens' kicking job in 2010. Cundiff knows he'll have to beat out a rookie draft pick, a veteran free agent or perhaps Matt Stover to stick around.
"Even if they brought a guy in for one minicamp, I would still take that as somebody to compete with because I'm a competitor," Cundiff said. "You want that. You have to make yourself better. If you don't have that mind-set, guys get complacent."
Cundiff understands the Ravens' stance, even though he solidified a shaky kicking situation for the team. After the Ravens and Stover parted ways last offseason, the team decided to let two young kickers (Steve Hauschka and Graham Gano) battle for the spot.
Hauschka won the job in the preseason, but he struggled during the regular season. The Ravens cut him after he missed three of his final seven field-goal attempts, including what would have been a game-winner at Minnesota.
Cundiff, who was signed Nov. 18, quietly converted 21 of 26 field-goal tries (80.8 percent). Suddenly, Ravens coach John Harbaugh wasn't hearing questions about his kicking game at every news conference. Still, Harbaugh wouldn't commit to Cundiff for next season.
"We want to have the very best kicking situation that we possibly can, just like we wanted to have the best situation last year that we possibly could," he said.
In his first game with the Ravens, Cundiff tied a team record by hitting five field goals in a 17-15 loss to the Indianapolis Colts. The next game, he recorded his fifth career game-winning field goal, making a 29-yard-er in a 20-17 overtime win over the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Cundiff also converted all three of his field-goal attempts in the playoffs.
"Billy Cundiff is a big possibility for us [next season]," Harbaugh said. "He proved that he could make field goals under pressure situations. He kicked off very well. I think he improved some things coming here. He'll be the first to tell you [he improved on] some mechanical things that he worked through when he first got here."
Finding an NFL home has been a challenge for Cundiff. After spending his first four seasons with the Dallas Cowboys, he bounced around seven teams (Tampa Bay, Green Bay, New Orleans, Atlanta, Kansas City, Detroit and Cleveland) during the past four seasons, never lasting more than one full offseason or regular season.
But he believes he proved something to the Ravens in his half season of work.
"I do believe I can be the guy here," Cundiff said. "I think as a competitor, you feel like you never show enough unless you make all of them. That's the way that I approach it. I feel like I left a few kicks out on the field. That's always a feeling that eats at you in the offseason."
The one kick that digs at Cundiff was missing a 30-yard try against the Chicago Bears, even though it came off a bad snap.
"Even if it's the worst snap or hold in the world - Sam [Koch] could hold it with his feet - and I still feel like I should be able to put it straight," he said.
The other miss that bothers him was a 50-yarder at Oakland. He attributed it to a bad kick on his part.
"You go back and say, 'I just don't feel like I hit the ball the way I should,' " he said. "Sometimes, the best explanation is I missed it."
Cundiff believes he never has been more ready to be an NFL kicker. He has matured with age and his training. Once a 190-pound rookie, he now weighs 212 pounds, which enables him to kick with more power.
Off the football field, Cundiff and his wife, Nicole, are expecting their second child in April. He has a master's in business administration to fall back on if the NFL doesn't pan out again.
"Life has kind of aligned itself to where no longer do you worry about football," Cundiff said. "I'm more worried about making my life complete."
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