Just because Chris Boswell has made game-winning kicks for the Steelers in four of their last five games doesn’t mean he’s ready to be included among Pittsburgh’s vaunted “Killers Bs.”
"No chance," Boswell replied to Omnisport’s question. "They’ve been doing this a lot longer. They have that history of being a 'Killer B' and playmaker. I just got here and I’m just trying to do my job."
Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger, wide receiver Antonio Brown and running back Le’Veon Bell comprise one of the NFL’s most potent trios. Roethlisberger and Brown have been especially clutch late in games.
While Boswell has been dependable, Pittsburgh’s kicker doesn’t think he quite has their "clutch gene."
"I don’t look at myself like that," Boswell said. "These guys have been doing this way longer than I have. This is only my third season. I think you have to have a long history to be considered clutch. Those guys have been around for a long time, doing the same thing. Bouncing back and coming through when we need them."
The Steelers (11-2) have won eight straight heading into Sunday’s AFC heavyweight matchup with the Patriots (10-3) at Heinz Field.
Boswell, 26, has made 32 of 35 field-goal attempts this season and has made 13 straight. He’s also made all 21 attempts at Heinz Field, one of the most difficult stadiums in which to kick because of the conditions associated with its proximity to the confluence of rivers.
"You always have to deal with some kind of swirling wind," said Boswell, who was undrafted out of Rice in 2014 and waived by the Texans and Giants before joining the Steelers in 2015. "Every kick is different. You just have to take it kick by kick and see what happens.
"Honestly, I’m just trying to do the same thing every single time — whether it’s the first kick of the game, middle of the game, end of the game. A kick is a kick, and you’ve got to execute every single time. That’s basically what I’m focused on."
Here are three questions with Steelers kicker Chris Boswell
Omnisport: You bounced around the league a bit in your first two years, have you found a home in Pittsburgh?
Boswell: "Yeah. The people here are awesome. The team here is awesome. I’m happy I’m here. I look back at all the struggle of not making it with those two teams, I definitely landed in a good spot."
Omnisport: When you see Morten Andersen go into the Hall of Fame and Adam Vinatieri a likely Hall of Famer, is that something you think about at all as a long-term goal?
Boswell: "I love the game and want to play as long as I can. I think if you don’t have that end goal in sight, then you’re not doing it for the right reasons."
Omnisport: Do you have any sort of trick kick you like to try during downtime in practices?
Boswell: "We all do. We all have our little trick kicks that we work on just for fun. It kind of gives us something to do to pass the time at practice because we have certain times when we kick during practice, and you don’t want to kick the whole time and wear yourself out. We have little ins and outs throughout the day to kind of speed up time."