Will Reichard Continues to Rekindle Confidence in Vikings Land
Admit it: after Will Reichard’s injury concerns during his rookie season in 2024, the thoughts that “it” was happening again at the kicking position for the Minnesota Vikings Football Club crept in at least a little bit. I’m not afraid to admit it, it would’ve been just another song and dance in the long and sports-tortured life of the average Minnesota sports fan.
Thankfully, as our own Janik Eckardt reported very recently, Reichard has been bouncing back very nicely as of late, and in Saturday’s exhibition against the New England Patriots, Will Reichard continued to give Vikings fans reason to solidify their opinions that he will not be just another cursed Vikings kicker.
Eckardt would include quotes from Alec Lewis of The Athletic, who reported Will Reichard ending a joint practice against the Patriots this week with a 53-yarder with “a lot to spare” after also making attempts from 44 and 48 yards. Skor North’s Judd Zulgad was also quoted, saying that Will Reichard “is back” after attending the annual Vikings’ night practice, where the kicker went 6/6 on attempts from 33, 40, 45, 46, 49, and 51 yards out.
Let’s take a look at what Kyle Joudry, also of PurplePTSD, wrote after Reichard’s first preseason game against the Houston Texans.
“Against the Texans, Reichard inspired confidence early. The Vikings put up 13 points in the opening half and 7 of those points came off the boot of the Alabama alumnus. He had a pair of field goals and an extra point. The first field goal came from 48 yards while the second field goal came from 38.”
It wasn’t all sunshine and rainbows this offseason for Reichard, seeing as Mr. Eckardt also reported the sophomore kicker’s struggles earlier this month. Thankfully, it seems as if the wagons are being circled for Will the Thrill.
He continued his perfect preseason against the New England Patriots, being the only Viking to score points on the day as he went 4/4, tallying the Vikings’ 12 points. The day moves his preseason totals to 6/6 on field goals and 2/2 on extra point attempts.
As I’ve stated before, if Will Reichard isn’t the guy at kicker for our beloved Minnesota Vikings, I genuinely do not know who is. He is the all-time leading scorer in college football history with a college-career 99.3% make-rate of extra points and 84.0% on field goals. His 2020 season was arguably his Magnum Opus, where he went 84/84 on extra point attempts and 14/14 on field goals. If you’re keeping count at home, that means he didn’t miss a single kick.
Let’s hope Will keeps it up as we inch closer and closer to the kickoff of the 2025 NFL season, because if we know anything about this team (especially during the KOC era), it’s that there’s gonna be some games decided by three points or less.
