Ross: Jason Myers thrives under pressure after game winner

Pressure. All of us experience pressure. A big exam. Getting a stubborn kid to school on time. A 5 a.m. phone call from the newsroom asking “Dave, shouldn’t you be here by now?”

That happened once.

But when I think of pressure – I think of this guy:

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The game-winning field goal has to be one of the most nerve-wracking plays in all of sports. Because all eyes are on one guy. I know the snapper and the holder are very important – as Chris Sullivan has helped me to appreciate – but it’s the kicker who has got to send that ball over a 10-foot bar between uprights spaced 18 feet, 6 inches apart.

And if my blood pressure’s going up just watching on TV, what must it be like for Seahawks kicker Jason Myers?

“I keep it all the same,” Myers said in a postgame interview after making the game-winning field goal. “Every kick, first quarter, game winner, keep it all the same. That’s kind of the best way that I’ve learned that I like to go about kicks, no matter what the situation is.”

I’m listening to his postgame interview and I’m thinking, come on! There are 69,000 people in the stadium – hundreds of thousands more around the country, people who do have money on the game who will either bless you or curse depending on one swing of your leg, even casual fans like me whose attitude come Monday depends completely on you. How can you not be nervous???

“That’s the nature of being a kicker in the NFL,” Myers continued. “You are going to be in those situations. I love those situations. So, (it has) been fun.”

Not only is he not nervous, he loves being in that situation. And that appears to be the key: To be so good at something that you actually look forward to the opportunity to show what you can do when all eyes are upon you.

But he also talked about the role of the organization he plays for in helping him maintain his confidence.

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“That’s why people love playing football here,” Myers added. “With the game of football, you’re never going to be perfect for the whole year. So, when you know you’re somewhere where they believe in players and getting you through situations. Most teams just let you go, and that’s why people love playing for this organization and love playing for (Coach Pete Carroll) .”

There’s the other important factor. His confidence comes not just from being good at what he does, but from working for an organization that doesn’t punish him for also being human.

The full audio of Dave Ross’ commentary is below:

Listen to Seattle’s Morning News with Dave Ross and Colleen O’Brien weekday mornings from 5-9 a.m. on KIRO Newsradio, 97.3 FM. Subscribe to the podcast here.

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