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BJ Sander

http://www.mercurynews.com/mld/mercurynews/sports/9375866.htm?1c


Neither Couch nor Nall holds, so the only other possible holder other than Pederson would be B.J. Sander or another punter. Sander held at Ohio State last season and in practice for two or three years before that but freely acknowledged that he isn't as good as Pederson.

"Doug's a fantastic holder," Sander said. "They've had all this experience together and just how smooth he is with the ball.

"This off-season I plan on working with Ryan (Longwell) a little more. What happened this year is we weren't together enough in the off-season where we could build that chemistry and get to a point where he was comfortable with me."

It looks as though Pederson will have to postpone h
 
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not off to a good start

http://www.madison.com/wsj/home/sports/index.php?ntid=8785&ntpid=2

COMMENTARY: Sander's legwork shows not-so-special teams
2:37 am 8/22/04
Tom Oates Wisconsin State Journal

GREEN BAY - In his wildest dreams - assuming punters are capable of having wild dreams, that is - B.J. Sander couldn't have conjured up a better setting for his Green Bay Packers debut six days ago.

The backdrop was perfect at Lambeau Field when the rookie from Ohio State put his job and coach Mike Sherman's drafting credibility on the line for the first time under game conditions. Sander had warm weather, minimal rush from the Seattle Seahawks and 10 chances to punt the ball in Green Bay's exhibition opener.

Better yet, since the Packers' offense seemed intent on getting its season-long quota of three-play drives out of the way early, Sander got to kick away from the Packers' half of the field nine times. No directional punting, no pooch punting, just let 'er rip.

Let 'er rip?

The only thing getting ripped Monday night was Sander. For the most part, he couldn't get a punt out of the infield. His only possible excuse was that his leg was tired from all the work.

Sander had already made a lousy first impression when he averaged a paltry 27.3 yards on three punts in the Packers' public scrimmage at Lambeau. He was no better against Seattle as only two of his 10 punts went longer than 39 yards and his average was an unacceptable 36.5 yards per kick.

Sander's third chance to make a good first impression came Saturday night in the Packers' 19-14 victory over the New Orleans Saints at Lambeau. No word on whether it was his final chance, but Sherman, who had steadfastly stood by his decision to use a third-round draft pick on Sander, finally admitted during the week that the Packers' punting wasn't very good.

Despite his investment in Sander, which also includes a $583,000 signing bonus, Sherman can't afford to have an ineffective rookie punter undermine an otherwise contending team. Especially one who already has joined Ray Stachowicz and Brett Conway on the fans' short list of memorable draft-day blunders.

With the regular season drawing near, it figured that Sherman was placing extra emphasis on the Saints game. Another disappointing performance by Sander and Sherman would almost have to think about scrounging around to find a veteran punter who could get the Packers through the season.

So how did Sander's night go?

Uh, let's just say he peaked early.

OK, so his 54-yard punt in the first quarter was a touchback. This is no time to quibble. Sander rebounded from his dreadful performance against the Seahawks by booming a punt that had both distance and hang time.

Unfortunately, it didn't last. Sander's next four punts averaged 30.5 yards. Not a one was hit well.

"I hit the first one well tonight," Sander said. "When I went into the wind, I tried to lower my drop a little bit and I just got out of my groove."

Despite his troubles, Sander insisted he is moving in the right direction. Sherman admitted he is thinking about moving in another direction.

"I still believe that this punter is young and can work through this thing," he said. "I've seen him make punts that are pretty impressive, I've seen him make punts that aren't so impressive.

"But it's two weeks into the preseason games. We're going to continue to work with him. Not have our head in the sand in the process, but continue to work with him and hopefully work him through this period where he's not hitting the ball as accurately as he has in the past. Everything that is wrong with him ... is very, very correctable. It's just a matter of getting it done during the game."

Sherman's problem was compounded by the equally poor performance of Nathan Chapman, an Australian punter who has a strong leg but has never played American football. In his first action of the preseason, Chapman punted three times for a 38-yard average. His longest punt was only 39 yards.

"He just didn't punt well," Sherman said. "Same with B.J. He just didn't punt well."

Sherman insisted Sander's confidence hasn't been shaken. The same can't be said for the coach.

Asked what it would take for him to go into the regular season with either of the punters currently on his roster, Sherman said, "There would have to be some fair amount of consistency, and we haven't had that just yet."

Sander's one booming punt showed that he at least has the leg strength to kick in the NFL. However, not even the struggles of the Packers' rookie cornerbacks Saturday night could overshadow the fact that Sander isn't close to being an NFL-caliber punter right now.
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That must be the BJ of 2001. Eventually, he'll turn into the 2003 version.
Hopefully thats soon because you can't have that in the NFL. If he doesn't make the cut, then down the road, someone is going to get a fine punter.

On a side note, I noticed A Groom did not punt for the Niners yesterday.
 
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BJ Sander (GB) completes pass to Bubba Franks

I was just checking stats for fantasy football and saw BJ was 1/1 passing for 4 yards... too bad they needed 6 for the first down, but still.. he covered for the bad snap. Did anyone see it? Was it a heads up play or his fault they couldn't kick the FG or what?
 
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I have it on Game Trax so I'm not sure what happened.... I wasn't able to get over the sports bar for the game. He's been punting a lot better this year... he's been alot more consistent... and unfortunately he's had a lot of chances to punt.
 
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It didn't look like too bad of a snap to me, maybe a little low. I could be wrong though,. I remember at the time that I thought he should have handled it. Pack won though, so no harm no foul. He is punting the ball much, much better.
 
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[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]
 [/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Posted June 03, 2006 [/FONT] [FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif][/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif][SIZE=+2][SIZE=+2] Ryan gets a leg up on Sander[/SIZE][/SIZE][/FONT][FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]By Rob Demovsky
PackersNews.com[/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Jon Ryan, the unknown Canadian who never has played in an NFL game, on Friday had the kind of day that might just win him the punting job with the Green Bay Packers.[/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Sure, it was only one day in June at an organized team activity workout, but Ryan booted the ball with the kind of power, consistency and hang time that incumbent B.J. Sander never has shown in his two-plus years with the team. With eight punts that averaged 63.1 yards and 4.56 seconds of hang time, Ryan probably took the lead in the race to win the punting job — if he hadn’t done so already.[/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Ryan, who played two seasons in the CFL before the Packers signed him this offseason, took the first reps on Friday during a special teams period that focused solely on punting. That alone is a sign he had moved ahead of Sander. By comparison, Sander, in the same conditions, kicked seven times and averaged 47.9 yards and 4.05 seconds of hang time.[/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]“He had a good day,” Packers director of pro personnel Reggie McKenzie said of Ryan. “This was a good day for him. B.J.’s had a couple of good days, too.”[/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Sander, a third-round draft pick in 2004 who struggled late last season before missing the final two games with a fracture in his left (kicking) leg, lacks Ryan’s powerful leg. [/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Backed up against his end line, with the line of scrimmage at the 2-yard line and a slight wind at his back, Ryan kicked seven times and Sander six. Ryan had kicks that carried in the air distances of 57 yards (with 5.0 seconds of hang time), 58 yards (4.5 seconds), 69 yards (5.2 seconds), 60 yards (4.2 seconds), 62 yards (4.7 seconds), 67 yards (4.8 seconds) and 66 yards (4.6 seconds).[/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]The 24-year-old Ryan didn’t seem surprised when those numbers were read back to him after Friday’s practice.[/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]“If I stay focused back there and don’t try to kill it, that’s when I usually get my good ones,” Ryan said. “I can hit them 55, 65 yards. I’ll take it. … It’s just one of those things I’ve been working on — the hang time — and it’s coming more naturally now. When I was in the CFL, you line-drived it a little more.”[/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Sander’s six punts went 42 yards (4.3 seconds), 49 yards (4.6 seconds), 45 yards (3.6 seconds), 43 yards (3.6 seconds), 49 yards (4.0 seconds) and 46 yards (4.5 seconds).[/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]The two then each took one punt with the line of scrimmage the 20-yard line. Ryan’s punt went 66 yards in the air with a hang time of 3.5 seconds, while Sander’s went 61 yards with a 3.8-second hang time.[/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]It was easily Ryan’s most consistent day. From the first minicamp through this week’s OTAs, Ryan has shown he has the stronger leg, but Sander hasn’t had as many shanks or miss-hits. But Ryan’s ball-striking was near perfect on Friday. If he can continue to make that kind of contact and keep his get-off time around 1.25 seconds, he’ll probably win the job.[/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]When he came to the Packers, Ryan, who was given a $35,000 signing bonus, was taking about 1.5 seconds to get the ball off from the time he caught it. He said during the OTAs, his kicks had get-off times between 1.24 and 1.32 seconds. Ryan didn’t face a live rush from the defense during the drill.[/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]“He’s got to continue to improve that,” McKenzie said. “That’s something there’s obviously been questions about, but that’s why we’re out here doing this.”[/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Sander wasn’t in the locker room when reporters were allowed in after Friday’s practice, and special teams coach Mike Stock also was unavailable. Coach Mike McCarthy said he was working with the quarterbacks during the special teams period and didn’t watch the punting. He said he planned to watch the tape later in the day.[/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Ryan said it’s been a healthy competition between him and Sander, and Ryan chose his words carefully when asked if he thought he had moved ahead of Sander.[/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]“I wouldn’t say (that) necessarily,” Ryan said. “He’s had some great days. I think today I had a fairly good day, but it’s a long haul from here until the season starts. We’re going to have a lot of days and a lot of punting ahead of us. You’re not going to win the job in one day, that’s for sure. I would think that they would hold on to both of us for a while and make one guy get ahead of the other guy and really earn that spot.”[/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Ryan last season set the CFL’s single-season punting record with a 50.6-yard average. Sander finished 30th in the NFL last season in gross punting average (39.2 yards) and 31st in net average (33.9 yards).[/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Ryan also might need to prove he’s a competent holder on place kicks. He was a backup holder in the CFL and has spent time after each practice this week working on his technique.[/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]“It’s getting pretty close to where it needs to be,” Ryan said. “I feel a lot more comfortable with it then when I got here.”[/FONT]
 
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[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Posted June 20, 2006 [/FONT][FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif][/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif][SIZE=+2][SIZE=+2]Notebook: Holding job still up in air[/SIZE][/SIZE][/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]By Dylan B. Tomlinson
PackersNews.com[/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]During the 2005 season, one of the biggest problems on special teams developed between the holder and the kicker.

As a result, the Packers missed seven field-goal attempts, the most they’d missed in a season since 2001. Not all of the misses were a result of bad holds, but it was an ongoing problem.
During organized team workouts over the past three weeks, the Packers have used several players to hold. Special teams coordinator Mike Stock said he wants to make sure there are several players capable of doing the job before training camp opens. But Stock said the holding job is one that is likely to be in question almost until the Packers open the regular season.
“We have to see which guys make the team,” Stock said. “After that happens, we can find out who the best holder is.”
Punter B.J. Sander did the job for most of last season, but he’ll have to beat out Jon Ryan to make the roster this season. It’s also not a certainty that either punter will make the team. The Packers could be looking to add another punter before or even during training camp. Receiver Ruvell Martin also has done a lot of holding, but with so many receivers on the roster, Martin may have trouble making the team, even if coach Mike McCarthy keeps as many as six.
Backup quarterbacks Aaron Rodgers and Ingle Martin have been practicing holding, and while both are likely to make the final roster, they haven’t been getting nearly as many reps holding as Ryan and Sander.
Stock said there can be definite advantages to using a punter as a holder. “With the quarterbacks and the receivers, holding is the least of their responsibilities during practice time,” Stock said. “With the punters, they can spend all of practices working with the snapper and the kicker and it can be the most efficient.”
http://www.packersnews.com/archives/news/pack_26514077.shtml
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The open audition he wanted
Ryan aims to unseat Sander as the Packers' punter

By TODD ROSIAK
[email protected]

Posted: June 16, 2006

Green Bay - Jon Ryan was looking for an opportunity this off-season, plain and simple.

I just knew [the Packers] were going to give me a fair look. B.J.'s a veteran, he played good last year, but he's not a guy that's been around for 10 years or anything.

So much so, in fact, that after he received offers from both the Green Bay Packers and New York Giants, the veteran of the Canadian Football League signed with the Packers despite the fact their offer of a $35,000 signing bonus was $5,000 less than the Giants' offer.

And now, rather than competing with 19-year veteran Jeff Feagles in New York for an opportunity that might never have come, Ryan has his sights set on replacing inconsistent third-year man B.J. Sander in Green Bay.

"I just knew they were going to give me a fair look," Ryan said of his decision to take less money to sign with the Packers. "B.J.'s a veteran, he played good last year, but he's not a guy that's been around for 10 years or anything."

He's also not a guy who's set the world on fire in his previous two seasons in Green Bay, either.

He became a source of criticism early in his first year when, after then-coach and general manager Mike Sherman spent a third-round pick to draft him out of Ohio State - earning him a signing bonus of $583,250 in the process - he punted so poorly he wound up being inactivate for all 16 games.

Sander won the job with a decent training camp last year but then proceeded to finish 30th among 30 punters in gross average (39.2) and net average (33.9), and tied for last with just 11 punts inside the 20-yard line and a long punt of 53 yards.

To be fair, Sander did tie for the league-low in touchbacks with two before missing the final two games of the season with a broken bone in his left (punting) leg.

But even if he had continued to kick there was no question the Packers would be looking to better themselves at the position in the off-season.

Ryan Flinn, who took Sander's place when he was injured, was kept around for another look until Ryan arrived. Then just before the team's post-draft minicamp Flinn was waived, turning it into a two-man battle for the job.

Although he has no previous NFL experience, the 6-foot, 202-pound Ryan did post impressive numbers in the CFL.

He averaged a league-record 50.6 gross yards per punt last season for the Winnipeg Blue Bombers, with a long of 82. In 2004, his first in Winnipeg, he booted a 92-yarder.

"I had really no other options but to go to the CFL. There was no NFL interest," Ryan said.

A native of Regina, Saskatchewan, Ryan played at the University of Regina before being drafted by Winnipeg. At both places, and even in the years before, he gained lots of experience kicking in adverse conditions - a must for any punter calling Lambeau Field home.

"I think it's an upside," he said.

Sander's performances worsened as the weather got worse in Green Bay last season, so Ryan's experience in such conditions undoubtedly played a role in the Packers' interest.

"I was up in Saskatchewan for a little bit of my early career and know what it's like in that place," said special teams coordinator Mike Stock.

Ryan and Sander have had limited opportunities thus far to punt in a team setting but when they have, the results have been inconsistent.

On Monday Ryan averaged 51 yards on eight punts with a long of 60 and Sander 48.9 yards on nine punts with a long of 55, but a stiff breeze was at their backs.

Compare that to a practice just three days earlier, when, while punting into a stiff breeze, each had a series of forgettable turns culminated by three sub-30-yarders by Sander and a miss-hit by Ryan that barely made it past the line of scrimmage.

Once the Packers' voluntary workouts wrap up on Wednesday, Ryan plans on returning to Canada to train. Consistency is his No. 1 goal.

"I think in terms of my distance and hang time, that's all good," he said. "I just need to get it consistently to where it's 45 yards and 4.6 hang time every time."

And once he and Sander return for the open of training camp on July 28, the competition will heat up like the weather.

And with a new regime in place, it's clear this coaching staff isn't entering with any preconceived notions about either punter.

"I'll let them decide (who wins) by the way they perform," Stock said. "Whoever performs the most consistently is the guy that's going to get the job."
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