At this point in his illustrious career with the Pittsburgh Steelers, veteran kicker Chris Boswell should be rather comfortable kicking inside Heinz Field.
To date, Boswell has hit 90.8% of his field goals (79-for-87) in his career at Heinz Field, and is at 95% for his career at Heinz Field on extra points. On the road, Boswell’s numbers drop slightly to 93.8% on extra point attempts and 84.8% (67-for-79) on field goal attempts away from Heinz Field, according to Pro Football Reference’s home and road splits for the seventh-year kicker.
Historically, kicking at Heinz Field has been a tough endeavor for both home and road kickers, due to the wind and the weather that comes off of the banks Ohio River. However, Boswell seems to have mastered the craft at Heinz Field, drilling more than 90% of his kicks at home in December.
Though he’s had plenty of action inside Heinz Field in real, live games throughout his career (42 career home games), Boswell says he’s much more comfortable kicking in Heinz Field thanks to the last two training camps the Steelers have been forced to hold inside its home stadium due to the COVID-19 pandemic and NFL regulations regarding the health and safety of players.
Speaking to reporters Wednesday prior to the final preseason game for the Steelers, Boswell addressed kicking at home.
“You definitely get comfortable being there,” Boswell said. “You know, you get some good winds off those rivers and the good open in the stadium. So you get a lot of work there, but I mean, nothing’s going to prepare you for in-game situations until you’re in the game. So I mean, I like being there and it’s, you know, getting more comfortable as we go, but nothing’s going to put you through a game situation besides being put in it.”
Boswell has certainly had plenty of game reps at Heinz Field, but it’s always great to hear just how comfortable the top kicker is at his home stadium heading into a crucial year for the Steelers and a new-look offense, which could lean heavily on the right leg of one of the last remaining Killer B’s in Pittsburgh.
While Heinz Field might not be as difficult to kick in as it once was after the franchise closed in the south end of the stadium facing the river in recent years, Boswell will undoubtedly hold the team’s top career numbers kicking at home when it’s all said and done.
