Oakland Raiders punter Shane Lechler and kicker Sebastian Janikowski have emerged as the team's candidates for the Madden 13 game cover.

Lechler and Janikowski become the first kicking specialists to be considered for the box cover of the widely popular NFL game. They both are deserving candidates.

Lechler and Janikowski have arguably the two strongest legs in the NFL. Janikowski made 12 of 15 field goals from 40 yards and beyond, including a NFL record-tying 63 yarder against Denver. Lechler averaged 50 yards per punt and 40 yards on his nets. They were both Pro Bowl and All-Pro selections.

Ray Guy would be proud. So would John Madden himself!

By Joe Eskenazi / SF Weekly

Speaking to the press after a superlative game, 49ers punter Andy Lee tends to credit God for his on-field mastery. If the Lord does intervene in kicks, it's happening across the National Football League. Football fans who aren't grumbling about stalled drives might notice we are enjoying a golden age of punting. Eight of the top-10 all-time yards-per-punt leaders are suiting up in today's NFL, and this year's 15th best punter would have been the league's yards-per-boot leader in 2002. Former Oakland Raider great Ray Guy — long the barometer for excellence in the position — currently ranks 78th in league history at 42.4 yards per punt.

Clearly, punting in the NFL is undergoing a revolution — and the Bay Area is its Bastille. Lee this season averaged 50.9 yards per punt; Oakland's Shane Lechler was just behind at 50.8. In fact, Lee's net average (including opponents' return) of 44.6 yards per punt almost equaled the league's gross average of 45 pre-return. "These guys are just bigger, stronger, and better than we were," says Barry Helton, the punter on the 49ers' Super Bowl-winning teams of 1988 and '89. Helton began punting in college, after being named Colorado Player of the Year three consecutive seasons — at quarterback. But for today's generation, "It's something they've trained for since they were little kids."

Punters are, on average, slightly taller and heavier than in Helton's day — and giants like Lechler (6-foot-2, 225 pounds), Brandon Fields (6-foot-5, 245), and Sav Rocca (6-foot-5, 265) aren't uncommon. Rocca, a former Australian rules football star, is one of many foreigners who introduced new punting techniques and expanded the position's talent pool.

"The money has gotten so big that more kids are saying 'Man, you can do that?'" notes veteran Jacksonville Jaguards punter Nick Harris, who shattered collegiate records at UC Berkeley. Promising youth punters now hone their niche skills at academies run by NFL alums. More than a third of today's starting punters trained at Guy's camps.

But today's kickers aren't just bigger and better. Harris also cites the Pythagorean theorem. He notes that a kick down the middle of the field will travel farther than a kick to the sideline — and more coaches are allowing their punters to emulate Lechler and let 'er rip, rather than following the "directional punting" strategy perfectedby Guy.

Finally, while punters of the past were stuck kicking the rock-hard new balls preferred by quarterbacks — though some were known to soften up balls with baseball bats or a spin in the dryer — that's no longer the case. A dozen "K-Balls" are used only for kicking plays; teams are allowed to "break in" a handful shortly before game time (though not with bats or dryers; "there's a guy who watches," Harris notes).

If you're scoring at home, credit money, specialization, training, Pythagoras, and consistent balls. And, per Lee, God.

It was a good year for Bay Area kickers in the National Football League.

It was also a good year for punters with ties to the Ray Guy Prokicker.com camps. Oakland’s Shane Lechler and San Francisco’s Andy Lee have served as camp instructors and Lee is a former camper as well.

Oakland’s tandem of Lechler and kicker Sebastian Janikowski and San Francisco’s tandem of Lee and kicker David Akers will be playing in the Pro Bowl.

Lechler averaged 50.8 yards per punt and Lee averaged 50.9 yards per punt. The great Sammy Baugh holds the NFL record with a 51.8 punting average in 1940.

By Vittorio Tufar / San Francisco Chronicle

Funny thing, after Shane Lechler boomed that 80-yard punt 10 days ago against Chicago to set a franchise record. The Raiders' punter said he hit the ball "perfect" ... and that it was "probably one of his top 10 punts"

Wait. He hit others more perfect?

In fact, yes. There was the time at East Bernard High School in Texas when he punted one 85 yards. Then, in his freshman year at Texas A&M, with coaches immediately amazed at his ability to kick footballs above and beyond the lights, Lechler took the snap at his 20 one day in practice. He blasted the ball and it didn't touch the grass until it was 7 yards deep in the end zone - 87 yards away.

"Shane had a gift," said his father, Dale. "Never went to one kicking camp as a kid. And he was kicking 30- and 40-yard field goals by the time he was in the fourth grade."

Lechler credits genetics - his grandfathers and father played college football - and survival instincts as a 3-year old.

"My dad became a high school football coach and athletic director," said Lechler, who's 6-foot-2, 225 pounds, "so I've been going to two-a-days (practices) since I could walk. I remember punting when my hands were too small to throw a football."

Now 35 and in his 12th season with the Raiders, Lechler is averaging 50.8 yards a punt and threatening Sammy Baugh's 1940 NFL record of 51.4 yards. The six-time Pro Bowler already owns the NFL record for career average at 47.5.

He is routinely compared to former Raiders punter Ray Guy, a seven-time Pro Bowler and hang-time king who played from 1973 to 1986 and was named to the NFL's 75th-anniversary team in 1994. Except that ...

"There is no comparison," former Raiders head coach and current broadcaster Tom Flores said. "To be fair, we never let Ray kick away. The philosophy back then was to kick for the sidelines, out of bounds. Now it's bombs away."

Guy's career average was 42.4. He has known Lechler since the college punter attended his camps twice in the '90s and instantly knew that he was special.

"You can spot that right away," said Guy, who still holds (Ray Guy Prokicker.com) camps all over the country. "We just try to get them to understand it's smoothness rather than quickness. ... With (the 49ers') Andy (Lee) and Shane, it was their overall movement, just the way they did things. They were so smooth, nothing was jerky, nothing was hard. They stood out."

Guy is not surprised that Lechler is seemingly getting better with age - his two best statistical seasons have come in the past three years.

"You probably lose a little leg strength, but I'm sure (Lechler and Lee) both have their workout program," Guy said. "You may not feel like you have the strength you once had, but you really do - you just get smarter and know how to control it. I was 37 when I retired, but my productivity technically had not fallen off."

It helps that both Guy and Lechler were big-time athletes.

Guy (6-3, 190) played defensive back at Southern Miss, intercepting 18 passes in three years. He also kicked a 61-yard field goal for the Golden Eagles.

Lechler was not only a state-champion quarterback in high school, but he weighed 240 pounds and was recruited as a fullback by Texas. "That was the end of me considering them," he said. Texas A&M considered him a quarterback and punter, and Lechler didn't switch to kicking full-time until he tore a quadriceps muscle before his junior season.

Raiders fans who come to Napa to watch training camp are always surprised and impressed by the spirals Lechler throws in the defensive backs' drills. The rest of the world got to see it when he finally threw a pass in an NFL game: a 35-yard touchdown to Kevin Boss on a fake field-goal try against the Browns on Oct. 16.

It was a special moment for Lechler.

"I try to be accepted as a football player," Lechler said. "I try to hang out with the guys on and off the field as much as possible, although it's kind of getting harder to relate to these guys when you're my age. Hopefully, I'm not looked at as just a punter."

Not by a long shot. Raiders head coach Hue Jackson calls Lechler one of the team leaders.

"He's been in here when it's been really good, he's been here when it's been really bad," Jackson said. "I've had so many personal conversations with him. I lean on him for so many different things. The guy is a huge part of this team, not just because he kicks, but because of what he's been through here."

Lechler has Jackson's ear despite the fact that the punter ripped late owner Al Davis early this year for not renewing the contract of head coach Tom Cable after last season's 8-8 record. Jackson was promoted from offensive coordinator shortly thereafter.

"He knew it wasn't personal," Lechler said. "I back my coach. I'll back Hue the same way. I'm a big believer in stability, and that's why I said what I said. I made it clear I had nothing against Hue."

Jackson went as far as asking Lechler to speak to the team after that win over the Bears 10 days ago. Lechler reminded teammates there were five games left with the playoffs in reach and, "If you want to keep this feeling, keep grinding."

Quarterback Carson Palmer had not heard of a punter giving a postgame talk, but said nobody blinked an eye in the locker room - because Lechler is not merely a punter.

"I think he's definitely the best punter in the league, but as far as a teammate, a leader, a veteran, a professional, he does everything right," Palmer said. "He says the right things. He doesn't act like a kicker. I wouldn't put him in that mold."

By Ron Kroichick / San Francisco Chronicle

Andy Lee once pictured himself flinging fastballs, not launching punts. Lee was a standout pitcher and center fielder at West-Oak High in Westminster, S.C. - a major-league scout once clocked his fastball at 91 mph - and hoped to play baseball in college.

Then, as his punts soared farther and higher, he imagined a two-sport career at the University of Pittsburgh. That vision ended when he entered the all-consuming world of Division I football.

He misses baseball, but not enough to bemoan the path he chose.

"I don't think I could have a better job than I have right now," Lee said.

It's a sweet gig, no question: punter for the 49ers, newly crowned NFC West champions. And Lee is no ordinary punter, standing second in the NFL (behind only Shane Lechler of the Raiders) with an average of 50.4 yards this season. Lee also ranks second in the league in net average, at 43.3.

These numbers offer tangible evidence of his long, steady climb. It started in eighth grade, when Lee spurned a chance to play quarterback mostly because he didn't want to risk getting hurt and jeopardizing his burgeoning baseball ambitions.

The decision made sense, especially when Lee hit almost .460 as a high school senior and earned all-state honors in baseball. He also became an accomplished punter, more than merely the lean kid with a strong leg who "dropped the ball like a watermelon," as he put it.

Lee began to understand the mechanics of the position by working with Kenny Gordon, an electrical engineer and volunteer kicking coach at West-Oak High. Gordon - whose son, Ryan, was the school's placekicker - brought some knowledge about the fundamentals of punting, and he found an eager student in Lee.

By the time Lee was a sophomore, Gordon sensed he had a future college punter, and possibly a pro, in his midst. Lee's leg strength and speed were that good, and so was his desire to improve.

"He really worked at it every day," Gordon said last week from South Carolina. "It wasn't just something he would do once a week. He put in the time. You have to have some sort of talent, but his practice and effort paid off for him."

The commitment came with social sacrifice. Lee grew up in a region flowing with lakes and rivers, and his high school friends spent most of their summers tubing and boating and jet skiing. He spent most of his summers playing American Legion baseball and working on his punting.

Gordon recalled one kicking camp where Lee immediately began lofting punts of 45-plus yards with good hang time. Dick Pierce, a noted kicking coach who ran the camp, initially suggested the kicks might be wind-aided. "No, that's Andy Lee," Gordon replied.

The next day, when Lee unleashed more booming punts, Pierce started calling college coaches - including Walt Harris at Pittsburgh - to let them know about Lee.

He quickly made an impact at Pitt, where he started all four seasons. He also attended a Ray Guy camp in Pittsburgh, and the gold standard for NFL punters couldn't help but notice Lee's smooth motion - much like Lechler's at another camp a few years earlier.

"I remember Andy when he first came in as a youngster; he was very attentive," Guy said. "Andy and Shane are both naturals. They pretty well had the motion down."

Lee, for all his natural athletic ability, still seems more a product of his work over the years. Just check out his ever-rising numbers in eight seasons with the 49ers: His average gradually has improved nearly every year, from 41.6 as a rookie to this year's 50.4.

Or ponder these numbers: In 703 career punts, Lee has had only two blocked and two others returned for touchdowns.

Lee credited the 49ers for displaying patience with him as he developed in his early seasons in the NFL. Bryan Deal, who coached Pitt's specialists when Lee was there, pointed to another factor: his background as a multi-sport athlete.

"He had a different mind-set and demeanor than many college punters and kickers, because he's a really good athlete," Deal said. "He liked the pressure. Bottom of the ninth, he wanted the ball hit to him - and he wanted the pressure of a big kick."

Deal also raved about Lee's reliable hands. That skill shows in his other vital job, as the holder for field goals and extra points. The 49ers don't need a dropped snap in the closing moments of a playoff game (just ask Tony Romo).

Lee, an easygoing sort with a soft South Carolina drawl, doesn't get caught up in his gaudy punting numbers.

"I've hit some not-very-great punts this year: 48, 50, 52 yards," he said. "That's good, but it's not great like 58 or 59. So there's a mis-hit there, even if it's not much. Those have just been coming a little less often, and I think it's from having confidence in myself and my teammates."

Still, it's easy to imagine some good-natured banter between Lee and Lechler if they keep grappling for the league's highest punting average. They're friends, occasionally trade text messages and have talked of playing golf together.

Lechler plays often during training camp in Napa, but he should know in advance: Lee lowered his handicap index to 1.4 last offseason. He might not fling fastballs these days, but he's more than a punter.

By Mark Maynard / Prokicker.com

Ray Guy is considered the greatest punter in the history of the National Football League despite his exclusion from the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

But while Guy still keeps an eye on the game he dominated from the punting position nearly 25 years ago, don’t expect to find him in the stands or glued to the television watching a game.

“People think I should (be a fan), just because I played it,” he said. “I’m not a fan that sits all down long. I ain’t gonna sit in no stands. I don’t sit and watch it on TV either. They don’t show the Raiders much here (in Hattiesburg, Miss.) anyway.”

But Guy still appreciates the beauty of the game and the importance of punting in being successful. While he had one of the strongest legs in NFL history, it was the art of the punting game that made him a special player. His angle punting consistently gained the Oakland Raiders field position, pinning opponents in unfriendly territory against a usually fierce defense.

“Field position and ball placement, that’s what’s important,” he said. “I’d pick out a certain point or a certain area. I didn’t ever pick out a spot, I picked out an area, about a 10-yard circle. If you try to spot kick it, you better be good. Ninety-nine percent of the time you’re not going to hit that bull’s-eye. You take a circle around that spot where the vital spots are. Then it’s all right if you don’t hit the bull’s-eye.”

Guy would tell the Raider players in the huddle the direction and area where he was going to punt it. That made coverage especially easy. No one ever returned one of Guy’s punts for a touchdown in 14 seasons.

He was the first and only punter ever to be selected in the first round in the NFL Draft. He led the league in punting three times, had a string of 619 consecutive punts before having one blocked and played on three Super Bowl champion Raider teams.

Guy averaged 42.4 yards per punt in his career. But he could put the power to it when necessary as exhibited by the five punts of more than 60 yards during the 1981 season. Guy once had a 74-yard punt for the Raiders, a mark that was eclipsed twice this season by Raider punter Shane Lechler.

But he was his angle pinpoint punting that made him one of the Raiders’ best weapons. He had 210 punts inside the 20-yard line (not counting the first three seasons when the NFL did not track the statistic) and only 128 touchbacks.

During Super Bowl XVIII against the Washington Redskins, it was a key 27-yard punt from Guy that pinned the Redskins on their own 12 late in the first half. On the next play, the Raiders Jack Squirek intercepted Washington quarterback Joe Theismann and returned it for a touchdown for a 21-3 halftime lead. The Raiders went on to win 38-9.

Guy just smiled when he watched replays of Lechler bombing an 80-yard punt against the Chicago Bears on Sunday.

Lechler and Guy met during a Ray Guy Prokicker.com camp in Richmond, Ky., in 1999. Lechler was already a punter at Texas A&M at the time. Guy is quick to credit Lechler’s natural talent but the two punting greats hit it off immediately.

Guy was one of the first to congratulate Lechler when the Raiders took him in the fifth round of the 2000 NFL Draft. The late Al Davis, owner of the Raiders, chose Lechler because of his connection with the Ray Guy Prokicker.com kicking camp.

Davis, speaking at the Ray Guy Award presentation the year Lechler was taken, said when he learned the punter was involved with Ray Guy’s Prokicker.com camp that confirmed they were going to select him in the draft. That’s how much clout Ray Guy’s name had with Davis.

Lechler, who many already consider one of the greatest punters in NFL history, hasn’t disappointed the Raiders. He’s averaging 51.5 yards per punt this season and threatening to break Sammy Baugh’s 70-year-old record of 51.4, set in 1940.

Guy said today’s punters have an edge in training but it still takes the natural ability to achieve greatness.

“It doesn’t matter how you train or who you got training you, you’ve still got to have the ability to accomplish whatever you’re doing,” Guy said. “There’s more study going into it (punting and kicking) now. People understand it more, the finer techniques of it. They know how you’ve got to adjust certain ways the ball hits the foot. It’s just amazing. It’s like golf equipment. It doesn’t matter what you’ve got in your hand, you’ve still got to perform it. There has to be the right mental approach and teaching.”

Guy said he is happy for Lechler, 49ers punter Andy Lee and several others in the NFL who have been part of the Ray Guy Prokicker.com camp over the years.

By Mark Maynard / Prokicker.com

Two of the top punters in the National Football League – Oakland Raider Shane Lechler and San Francisco 49er Andy Lee – have more in common than the league’s strongest legs.

They’re both Ray Guy Prokicker.com alumni.

Lechler and Lee, who enter this week’s NFL games ranking 1-2 in the league with 50-plus punt averages, are among a handful of NFL punters with Prokicker.com somewhere on their resume. Brandon Fields of the Dolphins and T.J. Conley of the Jets provided expert instruction to campers this summer. Donnie Jones of the Rams and Kevin Huber of the Bengals are also former camp instructors.

The list goes on and on for the Prokicker.com family of punters who provide expert instruction to campers every spring, summer and winter.

Lechler, Lee and Jones are three of the four punters in NFL history to carry 50-yard season averages (Jones did it in 2008 while Lechler and Lee made it there last season). The other? None other than the great “Slinging” Sammy Baugh, the all-around star of the Washington Redskins who holds the NFL record with a 51.4 punter average in the 1940 season.

Lechler and Lee have already touched on Baugh’s record and Lechler’s 51.5 average is on pace to break the 71-year-old record. He already passed Baugh’s NFL record for highest punting average in a career with 47.29 (Baugh’s average was 45.1). Lee’s season average is 50.0 for the 49ers.

“I recommend it so you can get around guys that have been there,” Lechler said. “You get to meet Ray, get to know what he’s like. Andy (Lee) helps with that. You get to work with some of those instructors, guys who have been in the league for years. Some of the instructors that Ray and Rick (Sang, camp director) get in there are good solid guys. It’s good to be around people like that. If you’re going to ready to leave high school and get to college it’s a great camp to attend. I could compare myself on the same with some of those guys. You can prove to yourself that you can do it.”

Lechler was invited to the camp in Richmond, Ky., in 1999 after Sang watched him boom punts for Texas A&M in a Thanksgiving battle with Texas. Lechler’s clutch punts into horrible weather conditions impressed Sang.

“I was at home watching the game with my dad,” Sang said. “The weather was terrible in Texas and he boomed one out of the end zone. I said ‘Who was that?’ and then found out it was Shane Lechler. I was able to get in touch with him and asked him if he wanted to meet Ray and spend some time with him. He came to our Kentucky camp.”

Lechler jumped at the chance to rub punting feet with Guy.

“It was great hanging out with him,” Lechler remembered. “The main thing when we talked, just like in years past, it’s always do what you can do. You’re not out there to outdo what you can do. Make sure you stay within yourself.”

 Lechler was a three-time All-State quarterback in high school who punted out of necessity. But he averaged 42 yards per kick without much instruction. He never figured on punting as an NFL career but he knew who Ray Guy was.

“I knew about Ray pretty much my whole life,” Lechler said. “I went to college as a quarterback. I didn’t concentrate on punting at all until I was a junior in college. I kind of lucked into a craft that I had. I was never a big punting fan. I did it (in high school) because nobody really could do it. I kicked on Fridays during the game and that was it.”

“Technically, he had all the tools there,” Guy said. “Mainly what we did was teach him the mental approach and mental attitude. It’s hard to tell anybody or teach them when they’re pretty much a natural deal. You take very little minor things and finer details on how you can make yourself better.”

Guy, considered by most to be the greatest punter in NFL history during his career with the Raiders, was the first person to call and congratulate Lechler after he was drafted in the fifth round of the 2000 draft out of Texas A&M.

Lechler owns most of the Raider punting records now, including the two longest kicks in team history. He had a 77-yard punt against Denver and last week launched an 80-yard punt against the Chicago Bears and dangerous return man Devin Hester.

“It was one of those things where everything happened at the right time,” Lechler said. “I caught Devin in a vulnerable spot. He was 47 yards away. It was one of those things where it was going to change the game but I didn’t know which way.”

Either Lechler hits it good or it flattens out and Hester is given the opportunity to return it.

“That’s as good as I’ve got one and I’ve gotten some big ones,” he said. “I hit the 77-yard one on Monday night (against Denver) but that was at Mile High (Stadium) and it’s a little different atmosphere than the (Los Angeles) Coliseum. That’s eight-feet below sea level.”

Lechler’s booming punt went about 80 yards in the air, stunning the Bears and swinging field position in the Raiders’ favor. Hester was limited to a combined seven punt-retun ayrds on two returns.

Before Lechler’s two incredible punts of 77 and 80, the Raider record belonged to Guy at 74 yards. But the former Raider star was happy to see Lechler break it.

“Shane hitting that 80-yarder on Sunday, that was great,” Guy said.

“Records are always meant to be broken. I like to see any punter do it.”

Guy said sometimes long punts came from hitting the football just right.

“In a lot of cases and some of the things I did, starting out I was intentionally not trying to do that. Everything was perfect. Like the 93-yarder I had at Southern Miss. All I was trying to do was get it out of the end zone.”

Lechler and Guy have more in common than the Raiders. They are both athletes who happen to be punters. Lechler runs the scout team for the defense and is an emergency quarterback. Guy, who was also a baseball pitcher in college who could throw a 100 mph fastball and was drafted by the Cincinnati Reds, was an emergency QB when he played for the Raiders.

Lechler joins a long chorus who believes Guy belongs in the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

“I think everybody in the world feels like it except the guys that are voting,” he said. “The kicking game gets a lot more emphasis today.”

But it’s always been important and game-changing in the NFL or any league, Guy said.

“They’ve won a bunch of games for them,” Guy said of Lechler and Lee. “Kickers get more notoriety than punters but punters win more games. It is a field position game and the punter is a two-way player, offense and defense.”

Lechler’s 38.8-yards net average over his career ranks third in league history, just shy of Jones’ 39.0 average, but his 43.85 net average in 2009 is the single-season mark.

Lee’s 43.9 net average leads the NFL currently. He was not only a Prokicker.com staff instructor for several years but also a former participant in camp.

Guy remembers working more with Lee than Lechler.

“Andy was a participant and then he started becoming a staff member for us and doing a super job,” Guy said. “You learn more by teaching it than by actually doing it. When you’re teaching it, you begin to get into the finer details. It makes you aware of what can make you better. I’m still learning.

“They’re doing great,” he said of Lechler and Lee. “You know both of them are team players, have always been that, and you’ve got to have that. You have to throw your little deals away.”

Prokicker.com camps have been the gateway to great success for most of the elite punters in the NFL today. Learn more about the camps at Prokicker.com

Mark Maynard / Prokickernews.com

It was a fantastic Sunday for Prokicker.com alum in the National Football League, led by Graham Gano’s three field goals including the game-winner for the Washington Redskins in a 22-21 victory over Arizona.

Gano made field goals of 23, 26 and 34 with the last one providing the difference for the 2-0 Redskins with 1:45 remaining.

Four punters also had memorable games in the second week of the NFL season.

-Brandon Fields (Dolphins) had a 60.3 punting average. Fields punted three times, putting two inside the 20, and also unleashed a 70-yard punt.

-Daniel Sepulveda (Steelers) had a 58.3 punting average. Sepulveda had a career-best 66-yard kick in the third quarter.

-Andy Lee (49ers) had a 55.3 punting average. Not only did Lee have a 66-yard kick, but he finished the day with a 54.2 net average on five punts. It's the second-best single-game mark in NFL history, behind the Indianapolis Colts' Rohn Stark's 1992 record of 59.5. Lee's 59.6 gross average ranked third all-time in the NFL record book, behind Detroit's Bob Cifers (61.75 in 1946) and Green Bay's Roy McKay (61.6, 1945).

As a side note, Stark was once a Prokicker.com staffer as well.

-Shane Lechler (Raiders) had a 51.7 punting average. Lechler had a 58-yard punt among his three kicks.

Want to learn from the best? Be sure to attend one of Prokicker.com’s winter camps. Go to Prokicker.com for information.

By Mark Gaughan / Buffalo News

The two best punters in the NFL over the past decade will be fighting the field-position battle Sunday when the Oakland Raiders come to town for the Buffalo Bills' home opener at Ralph Wilson Stadium.

Oakland's Shane Lechler was the No. 1 punter on the NFL's all-decade team for the 2000s. Brian Moorman was the second-team choice for the 10-year span from 2000 to 2009. Lechler has made the last four Pro Bowls as the AFC punter. Moorman made the two before that, in 2005 and 2006.

Moorman doesn't view the game as a personal battle, but he's a fan of good punting.

"Honestly, I don't care that he's here or anybody else, but I like watching him kick," Moorman said after the Bills' practice on Wednesday. "He's one of the best there's ever been. It's always good to go out and compete. It's not a me-versus-him thing, because it's all game-planning. ... I want to put my best foot forward every week, and this week is no different. I want to hit all good balls."

Lechler and Moorman have spent most of their careers hitting good balls. Lechler ranks No. 1 all time in gross average, at 47.4 yards a kick. He ranks third all-time in net average at 38.8 yards a kick. Moorman, who has punted in worse weather than Lechler his entire career, has a gross average of 43.5 yards and a net of 37.6, just a yard behind Lechler. Only six punters ever have averaged 40 net yards for a season. Lechler has done it four times, Moorman once.

When it comes to punting, however, no one statistic tells the whole story.

Take Moorman's 2010 season, which wasn't quite as good as usual. His net average was 36.6 yards. But the Bills' offense was better than in the past, so he had more punts near midfield, a position in which he's not going for maximum distance. He also probably did more directional punting than in the past, and there was a benefit to it. The Bills never got hurt by punt returns. They gave up only two returns of 20-plus yards, with 25 yards being the longest. The Bills never have given up a punt return for a touchdown in Moorman's 10-plus seasons.

"If I were to just dissect my own game last year, I'd have liked to have been more consistent," Moorman said. "That's one thing I want to work on this year, is consistency. It's something I feel I've been pretty good at in the past."

Moorman had a good start in Kansas City. He averaged 51.4 gross yards, and that included a 24-yard "Aussie kick" that pinned the Chiefs at their own 14. (On an "Aussie kick" the ball is dropped at a more downward angle, and the kick ideally produces backspin.)

Lechler, 6-foot-2 and 225 pounds, brings great size and strength to the position. Moorman, 6-foot and 175, brings a sprinter's leg speed. Moorman was an All-America hurdler at Pittsburg State and is in the Division II Track and Field Hall of Fame.

Moorman worked hard this offseason on weight and speed training, using workouts similar to a track sprinter. He does not run hurdles anymore.

"A few years ago I'd get a few hurdles out for fun," he said. "In the offseason maybe I'd mess around with it. But if you wrench your back, that's not good. I finally told my wife I'm retiring from hurdles."

The Bills held all their top punt-return foes in check last year. Moorman is expecting to do a fair amount of directional kicking this year and hoping to force opposing offenses to drive long fields.

"I want to be as effective as I can for this team field-position wise," he said. "I think we'll be better on special teams this year, and hopefully I'll be a big part of that."

Moorman also knows that the Buffalo weather won't help his statistics. Pinning opponents deep in their own territory is among the challenges in windy Orchard Park.

"When you're going one way in our stadium, usually you have a howling wind, left to right at your back, and you don't want it to go in the end zone," he said. "You go the other way, and you have to kick it hard to get it to go far enough. You have to hit it a little lower, but then if it hits the ground it goes forward [and potentially into the end zone]."

Both Moorman and Lechler are 35. Moorman has two years left on his contract and hopes to play to age 40.

"My mind is still 23, and to be quite honest, my body doesn't feel much different from that, either," he said. "The guy I came into the league with and learned from, Jeff Feagles [in Seattle], played 'til he was 44. If I can work on those type of directional things, I don't see myself losing a lot of leg speed or leg power. ... Ideally I'd like for it to be here. If I can keep doing the things to help in this climate, I don't see why I can't stay here."

OAKLAND, Calif. - Six-time Pro Bowl punter Shane Lechler will be the emergency quarterback for the Oakland Raiders, at least until rookie Terrelle Pryor is able to practice with his teammates after serving a five-game suspension.

The Raiders opted to keep only two quarterbacks after cutting Trent Edwards on Sunday. Starter Jason Campbell and backup Kyle Boller are the only ones on the roster. Coach Hue Jackson made the decision to go with Lechler as No. 3. Lechler was a quarterback in high school but has never thrown a pass in the NFL.