The final week of Minnesota Vikings’ organized team activities wrapped up this week. While head coach Kevin O’Connell gave most veterans with more than five years of experience the week off, though some vets were still present.
Have the Minnesota Vikings found a new franchise Kicker in Will Reichard?
One non-veteran, rookie kicker Will Reichard, sure seems to have made a strong impression on some this week at Vikings OTAs. Selected in the 6th round of the 2024 NFL Draft, Reichard pretty much blew beat reporter (PurpleInsider.com) Matthew Coller’s mind.
“Holy hell. That’s it. That’s my analysis [of Will Reichard]. And I mean that in a good way.”
“Oh my gosh. He just kicks the heck out of the ball. He was kicking 55 yarders that were going at the top of the goalposts.”
“He kicked it from the logo, which would be 60 yards, and there’s a net behind it. So there’s the two points you kind of look at to give you an idea of how well he kicked it… His 60-yard kick cleared everything and still landed in the net. That’s like 5-7 yards behind it, which means good from 65 potentially.”
“And the consistency in which he just kicked them from deep over and over and over and over through. I was very impressed. I was very impressed.”
Matthew Coller talking about Minnesota Vikings rookie kicker, Will Reichard (Purple Insider)
I mean, 60 yarders with ease? He sounds like Justin Tucker on steroids. After years of heartbreak with their kickers, could this be the moment the Vikings finally have their franchise kicker?
Dane Mizutani (Pioneer Press) said Reichard looks “like a robot” with how easy he makes kicking field goals look. Not only is he popping them from deep. At this point, we’ve all seen kickers who can do that. But apparently, this kid just doesn’t miss.
“But it did seem, and I’d be willing to go out on this limb, and if I don’t know if he missed a kick that I was watching, and if he did, he didn’t miss many.”
“And just the sheer volume when the ball leaves his foot just sounds different. Like, the boom you hear when he connects through the football, it sounds different.”
Dane Mizutani talking about Minnesota Vikings rookie kicker, Will Reichard (Purple Insider)
Will Reichard holds the record as the all-time NCAA Division I FBS scoring leader, amassing 547 points through 84 field goals and 295 PATs. He concluded his college career as Alabama’s top field goal scorer, creating an impressive legacy. Now, he aims to bring his success to the NFL.
Reichard is no stranger to winning, having played for one of the most successful college programs in history, with only a few losses over his five-year college career. And you can’t get bigger late game moments than what Reichard has already seen either. Cross your fingers and pray that this kicker is different, Minnesota Vikings fans.
