91 players in 91 days: Kicker/punter Kaare Vedvik

The Buffalo Bills don’t appear to have too many weaknesses on their roster heading into the 2020 season, but a sneaky spot in need of improvement is the kicking game.

In 2019, Buffalo employed the No. 21 overall kicker in terms of made-field-goal percentage, the No. 31 overall kicker in terms of average depth of kickoff, the No. 30 punter in terms of average yards per punt (gross and net), and the No. 1 punter in terms of total touchbacks kicked—that’s number one in terms of who did it most, which is not great, Bob.

Buffalo’s answer to this potential problem? Competition! For the last few seasons, the Bills have had a”Corey vs. Cory” battle at punter, and though the spelling may change again, this year is no different.

In today’s edition of “91 players in 91 days,” we profile a familiar face in the race to be Buffalo’s punter.

Name: Kaare Vedvik
Number: 6
Position: K/P
Height/Weight: 6’3”, 210 lbs.
Age: 26 (27 on 3/16/2021)
Experience/Draft: 1; signed as undrafted free agent with the Baltimore Ravens following the 2018 NFL Draft
College: Marshall
Acquired: signed reserve/future deal with Bills on 1/7/2020

Financial situation (per Spotrac): Vedvik’s two-year deal is worth a total of $1,403,000, of which $13,000 is guaranteed. If he makes the final roster, Vedvik will carry a cap hit of $616,500 for the 2020 season.

2019 Recap: Vedvik’s year was a whirlwind. He began the season with Baltimore, and in the Ravens’ first preseason game, he nailed all four of his field-goal tries, including a 55-yarder. That was on August 8. On August 11, the Ravens traded him to the Minnesota Vikings for a fifth-round pick, presumably to take the kicking job from veteran Dan Bailey. That plan didn’t work, as Vedvik attempted four field goals with the Vikings, making only one—a 27-yard kick in the preseason finale against Buffalo—before he was waived on August 31. On September 1, the New York Jets claimed him off waivers and made him their kicker. That move proved to be a bad one, as Vedvik missed an extra point and his lone field goal attempt in a season-opening 17-16 loss to Buffalo. The Jets waived Vedvik on September 10.

Positional outlook: The Bills officially list Vedvik as both a kicker and punter, which is why we’ve done the same here, but it’s more likely that he is competing with Corey Bojorquez to punt than it is he’s competing with Stephen Hauschka and rookie Tyler Bass to kick.

2020 Offseason: Nothing new to report.

2020 Season outlook: Two things about Vedvik are undeniable: he has ridiculous leg strength, for one, and second...his debut as a kicker went about as poorly as it could have gone. The addition of Bass likely takes away the possibility that the team would allow Vedvik to compete for the kicking job, but his struggles as a kicker shouldn’t sour us to his potential as a punter. In college, he booted a 92-yard kick, second only to Ray Guy’s 93-yard boot in terms of the longest punt ever. Yes, it was aided by a terrible read by the return man, sunshine, and a friendly roll...but that thing was a boot. This year, it’s Corey vs. Kaare (which isn’t pronounced ‘Cahr-ee,” but “Corey” like Bojorquez) once again, and after watching Bojorquez struggle for consistency over the last two years, the punting job is definitely up for grabs.