The Pittsburgh Steelers are among the few NFL teams that have been blessed with a steady, reliable kicker for nearly a decade. Chris Boswell is now in his 10th season in the Steel City, and he is one of three current players who has played over 100 regular season games, along with Cameron Heyward and TJ Watt. While only selected to the Pro Bowl once, he has been named the AFC Special Teams Player of the Week four times during his career and has won the AFC Special Teams Player of the Month an additional four times. Despite all of the achievements, it hasn't always been easy; Boswell has had his struggles, particularly in 2018.
Matt Durisko / AP Photo
Steelers kicker Chris Boswell looks on after making a 50-yard field goal against the Cincinnati Bengals.
He recently joined his teammate, long snapper Christian Kuntz, on his show, The Christian Kuntz Podcast. Kuntz asked Boswell about that difficult year and how he dealt with it. In a league where teams often choose to move on from kickers rather quickly, the Steelers decided to stick by Boswell.
"Huge props to [Art] Rooney [II] and [Mike] Tomlin and Kevin Colbert at the time," said Boswell. "In this business, it's you're in and out quick, especially at the kicker position. When I went through my year, it was one of the most down moments of my life. You're in it, you can't get out of it. Everything is just magnified and that's when I learned a lot more about myself. I called my agent three or four times that year wanting to quit, wanting to be done, wanting to just get out of it."
Boswell currently leads the league in kicking in 2024. He has made 40 field goals and he's 93.0% on all attempted kicks (averaging 43 yards). His longest is 57 yards, and he has made 12 out of 14 attempted kicks over 50 yards. He has made every kick attempted under 40 yards. Plus, he has made all 33 extra points tried. In 2018, his down season, he was only making 65% of his attempted field goals, 13 out of 20. He was making only roughly half of his kicks over 40 yards. He even struggled with extra points, making 89.6%.
Karl Roser / Pittsburgh Steelers
Steelers' Chris Boswell kicks one of six field goals in a win over the Ravens.
Head Coach Mike Tomlin helped Boswell get back on track. Kuntz said that whenever he is kicking, Tomlin is nearby cracking jokes, chirping at him, and trying to distract them. Boswell said if you can kick in a Steelers practice, you can kick anywhere. His exceptional talent has won the Steelers many games.
Steelers' James Harrison Welcomed Chris Boswell
Boswell said James Harrison made sure he got a warm welcome to the NFL. Harrison has been known for his intimidation techniques against opponents for years, but he didn't usually turn his attention to his teammates.
The team was frustrated that they were going through one kicker after another that year. They started camp with Shaun Suisham, who tore his ACL during the Hall of Fame game. He was replaced by Garrett Hartley, who pulled his hamstring in the preseason. Then it was Josh Scobee, who missed two field goals Week 1. The last straw was costing the Steelers a game against the Baltimore Ravens in Week 4. They had the lead 20-17, but Scobee missed two kicks, allowing Justin Tucker to make one of his own to tie the game and send it to overtime, where he made another to win it 23-20 for Baltimore. They signed Boswell after that loss.
He said to make sure Boswell could handle it, Harrison put pressure on him. During his first practice in Pittsburgh, Harrison stood over the placeholder and told Boswell, "I dare you to miss this kick. I dare you to miss it. If you miss this kick, you washing my back in the shower." He'd been told to ensure the new guy made it or broke.
MARK HUMPHREY / ASSOCIATED PRESS
Former Steelers linebacker James Harrison during Super Bowl XLIII.
Do you recall when Boswell had his bad year? How impressive is his bounce back and what he means to the Steelers? Click to comment below.
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