CFL.CA STAFF
Each week CFL.ca’s Jaime Stein and Mitch Ward will debate a current issue in the CFL. This week they debate which rookie CFL kicker is better: Calgary’s Rob Maver or Toronto’s Grant Shaw. Read their arguments and then have your say on the debate in the comments section below and in the poll on the right-hand side.
MITCH WARD says: Grant Shaw is the best rookie kicker in the CFL this season. And the fact that we both went to the University of Saskatchewan has nothing to do with it.
Let’s start with the numbers.
Sure, Rob Maver has made more field goals than Shaw – eight made kicks to Shaw’s five. But Shaw hasn’t missed. He’s a perfect 5-for-5 on field goals and 4-for-4 on PATs.
Shaw’s degree of difficulty has also been substantially higher than Maver’s. He banged home a 52-yarder last week in a 4-for-4 performance to help the Argos snap a nine game slide.
On the other hand, six of Maver’s makes have come from inside of 25 yards and his one attempt from 40+ (a 42-yard attempt in Week #1) sailed wide right.
The average distance on Shaw’s field goals is 31.4 yards – a full 10 yards farther than Maver’s.
Shaw has a booming leg and a ton of room to improve. In university, he was actually a Canada West All-Star at cornerback, he just happened to kick in his spare time. The fact that he never devoted himself to kicking full-time in either the university or junior ranks not only makes his current performance impressive but makes his potential incredible.
He’s impressed the Argos so much that he has made Justin Medlock, 2009’s second most accurate kicker and one of the Argos only bright spots, an afterthought.
At six-foot-three and 210 pounds Shaw’s size, strength and speed also gives the Argos an element of versatility Maver simply can’t match. Besides handling the Double Blue’s field goals Shaw has been deployed on punt cover duties.
He is the best rookie kicker in the league right now and given some more time to work with professional coaching he may just become one of the best in the league. Period.
Oh and before Stein gets too ahead of himself and starts gushing over how clutch Maver is after one game winning kick against the Ticats, let’s remember something. It was a 23-yarder. If you are getting paid to kick a football, you had better make that.
I would also like to deduct points from Maver for the goofy smirk in his headshot. Pot, meet kettle.
JAIME STEIN says: While my colleague and desk mate Mitch will argue his points based on personal bias and love for a former classmate, let me present to you the reasons why Rob Maver is the best rookie kicker in the CFL in 2010.
Firstly, Maver is clutch.
Maver was a perfect 3-for-3 on field goal attempts in his second career CFL game on Saturday afternoon in Hamilton. He was kicking against his mentor, Sandro DeAngelis, while holding down the former Stamp’s old job. It was just another day on the field for Maver who nailed the game winning field goal from 23-yards out with 10 second to play. Add in the fact that Maver was in front of friends and family having attended the nearby University of Guelph and all in all it was a masterful performance.
Secondly, Maver leads the league in scoring.
Maver’s 29 points are three ahead of Winnipeg’s Alexis Serna while his eight field goals made are two better than B.C.’s Paul McCallum. Maver is kicking in elite company and has helped the Stampeders kicking game maintain its high standards even after losing the league’s all-time most accurate kicker in DeAngelis.
Finally, Maver has swagger.
Yes, most players and some fans dislike kickers – especially those with attitude. However, to have success at this level you need a little moxie – or a lot if we are talking about Maver. Case in point is how quickly he has been accepted by outspoken Calgary receiver Nik Lewis, a man who is never shy of the cameras. Maver is one of the few kickers in football history to be a first round draft pick and he is living up to the billing.
Maver’s future is bright and while he didn’t hit a 52-yarder like Grant Shaw this week, he is the best rookie kicker in the class and will be one of the best for years to come.