Creepy

On Friday, Bill Simmons compared the Jets Chargers to the Colts Steelers of ’05.  The comparison just got weirder.

8. Nick Kaeding is the new Mike Vanderjagt – A cap-tip to Fabulous Football Forum member Dolphins for making the comparison.

Vanderjagt, of course, was the former Colts kicker known for the most accurate leg in NFL history. He converted 230 of 266 field goals in his career (86.47%). Yet he couldn’t put a ball between the uprights in the playoffs with a 30-aught-6 and a scope.

Despite his regular-season accuracy, he was canned by the Colts after missing a game-tying kick in the final seconds of their 21-18 loss to the Steelers in the 2005 playoffs. The fact that he was a major-league douche didn’t help his cause.

Kaeding, however, is the new Vanderjagt, and likely to join him in the unemployment line today. The San Diego kicker had a career year in 2009 and along the way surpassed Vanderjagt as the most accurate kicker in league history.

The Chargers kicker missed three field goals in all of 2005 (21 of 24); he missed three field goals in all of 2006 (26 of 29); he missed three field goals in all of 2007 (24 of 27); and he missed three field goals in all of 2009 (32 of 35).

And then he missed three field goals on Sunday against the Jets (0 for 3). We’re not rocket scientists, but three missed field goals in a three-point loss seem kind of important to us.

Kaedking has converted 150 of 172 regular-season field goals (87.2%). He’s converted 8 of 15 postseason field goals (53.3%).

He missed a critical field goal in San Diego’s 20-17 loss to the Jets in the 2004 playoffs; he missed a critical field goal in San Diego’s 24-21 loss to the Patriots in the 2006 playoffs; and how he missed three field goals in San Diego’s 17-14 loss to the Jets here in the 2009 playoffs.

Not since Florida State and wide right has a team’s kicking game so resembled Groundhog Day.