New England Patriots
“You can see when he’s building some confidence in his swing, it just looks good,” coach MikeVrabel said.
Andy Borregales got his first chance at a go-ahead NFL field-goal attempt on Sunday night, and he drilled it right down the middle.
The Patriots were tied with the reigning AFC East champion Bills. Drake Maye and Stefon Diggs had taken the offense as far as it would go. Mike Vrabel ran the clock down to 20 seconds and trusted his rookie kicker.
“Just treated it like any other kick,” Borregales said. “Went out there, trusted that the snap was going to get there, hold was going to be great, everyone’s going to block in front, and the ball goes in.”
Borregales overcame a rough start to the season. He missed a field goal in the opener and a pair of extra points the following week against the Dolphins. He didn’t get any attempts against Pittsburgh or Carolina, but he was a perfect 3-for-3 against Buffalo. He’s now 7-for-8 on field-goal attempts this season.
“You can see when he’s building some confidence in his swing, it just looks good,” Vrabel said. “I don’t know much about kicking other that it just looks like a good drive, when those pros hit it right down the middle, and there’s some balance to it and some calmness.
“He’s been working hard, [assistant special teams coach] Tom [Quinn] and [special teams coordinator] Jeremy [Springer] have been working hard with him as well to maintain that consistency, that consistent swing. I’m excited. I’m happy for him.”
Vrabel’s support of Rhamondre Stevenson amid his fumbling problem, along with his decision to stick with Borregales after his struggles in Week 2, are a pair of examples the coach’s patience. The support did not go unnoticed, Borregales said.
“It meant a lot,” Borregales said. “Obviously I’m a rookie, had my struggles in the beginning, but just having them come tap me on the shoulder, like, ‘Hey, don’t worry about it, on to the next one’ helped me remind myself that one kick doesn’t define me. Just keep moving on, because life doesn’t stop.”
It was one of those moments, as a road underdog with the game on the line in prime time, that can strike fear into the hearts of certain people.
“Some people can’t watch, some people can watch,” Borregales said. “I watched it halfway and saw it down the middle and got excited, started celebrating a little bit. Because at that point, I knew it was going in.”
After the game, in the locker room, Borregales’s teammates chanted his name. He smiled when asked about it at the podium.
“That was awesome. We take pride in building a brotherhood, a family,” Borregales said. “I treat every one of those guys in there as my brother, and I’ll die for them.”
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