Vikings Sign Rhys Lloyd, Why Two Kickers Makes Sense

It's been a quiet free agency signing period for the Minnesota Vikings thus far. But they finally made some noise late yesterday by signing former Carolina Panthers kickoff specialist Rhys Lloyd. Lloyd, an unrestricted free agent, announced the deal just before midnight ET on his Twitter, thus canceling a previously planned visit with the N.Y. Giants today.

Before you're unimpressed with the news of adding a kicker to the roster, think back to 1998 when the Vikes went 15-1. Punter Mitch Berger served as kickoff specialist, frequently sending one boot after another into the opposing team's end zone. It put that season's mediocre defense in the best possible position to succeed. Of course, because Berger was the punter, the team didn't have to devote two roster spots to place kickers. But it absolutely makes sense to do so. Special teams is 1/3 of the equation to earn victory in the National Football League. And with an aging Ryan Longwell frequently blooping kickoffs to the opposing team's 10- or 20-yard-line late last season, it put a tremendous strain on Minnesota's special teams unit.

Still need convincing? Let's quickly compare the 2009 numbers between these kickers. Lloyd kicked off 72 times with 21 of those resulting in touchbacks (29 percent). Longwell kicked off a whopping 98 times with only five touchbacks (five percent).

That being said, Ryan Longwell's not going anywhere. The Vikes will employ two kickers. Longwell had a fantastic 2009 season, making 93% of his field goal attempts. Rhys didn't attempt any. But if the Vikings had one glaring weakness on special teams, they just strengthened it. Lloyd has one job to do and I expect him to do it well.