As the Steelers prepared to have a tryout with free agent kickers Kai Forbath and Matt McCrane after practice Wednesday, current kicker Chris Boswell stood at his locker and talked about what he knows about his job -- at least for now.
"I've been in that situation before," Boswell said as the tryout took place across the parking lot at the team's indoor practice facility. "I came here off the street. I was cut many times before that. I've kind of had my back against the wall since coming out of college. That's the position I'm in now. We'll see what happens from here."
We will indeed.
Mike Tomlin said Tuesday the team would consider options other than — and including — Boswell as the Steelers placekicker when they host the Patriots at Heinz Field Sunday.
But, at least through Wednesday's practice, the job remained Boswell’s, who missed a pair of field goal attempts in Sunday's 24-21 loss at Oakland.
Boswell, a Pro Bowl kicker in 2017, who made five game-winning field goals last season, has struggled through an erratic 2018. He's made just 10 of 16 field goal attempts -- after making 35 of 38 last season -- and also has missed five PATs.
"It's mechanical. It's mental. It's a mixture of everything," Boswell said. "You just have to figure it out as you go and find something that works for you. What works for me might not work for somebody else. It's kind of me figuring myself out and coming back from this."
As for Tomlin's pronouncement that his job is open -- even though he is still an option -- Boswell said it's nothing new. He earned his spot on the Steelers' roster in an open tryout four years ago to replace ineffective Josh Scobee.
“That's the nature of the business," said Boswell, who has been released four times in his career. "You're judged on wins and losses and how you do your job."
Complicating matters for the Steelers is Boswell's contract status. The Steelers gave Boswell, who had made over 90 percent of his kicks entering this season, a five-year, $20-million contract extension prior to the start of the season.
It seemed a good investment at the time. But now, if they were to release Boswell, either now or in the offseason, he would count $2.8 million against their salary cap in 2019.
Obviously, Forbath or McCrane would be much cheaper moving forward, but cap space used is cap space used, regardless of the current salaries involved.
Forbath, a six-year veteran, has made 85.9 percent of his career field goals with Washington, New Orleans and Minnesota. McCrane has appeared in four games this season, one with Arizona and three with Oakland, making five of his nine field goal attempts.
Boswell isn't concerned about who the Steelers bring in or how many other kickers they try out.
"Like any other position, any other sport, you have to know that you got here for a reason," he said. "I just kind of have to get back to doing those things that got me here.
"I'm worried about me. I can't really worry about anything else."
