The kickers in the NFL are worse than they have been for a long time. At least when you look at the extra points and at what percentage they are being converted. Instead of getting used to the longer distance, kickers have been hitting fewer and fewer PATs for years.

Munich – At the beginning of the 2015 season, the NFL changed the rule for extra points after a touchdown.

After the ball was always placed on the 2-yard line until then, since 2015 it has to be kicked from 13 yards further back.

It is certainly no big surprise that the odds went down compared to before. But it is a surprise that the kickers cannot get used to the longer distance even after years.

Slowest kicking rate in 42 years

For comparison, the PAT (point after touchdown) hit rate in the 2014 season was a near perfect 99.3 percent. In contrast, in the first year after the extra point line was moved to the 15-yard mark, only 94.2 percent of attempts were successful.

The significantly lower rate can certainly be explained by the switch to the longer distance. It can therefore be assumed that as time goes on and the kickers get used to the new system, the scoring rate will also increase again.

But far from it. In the 2016 season, one year after the rule change, the rate dropped again. This time to 93.6 per cent. In the following years, too, the kickers did not seem to “recover” from the change and could not return to the seasons before 2015.

Even more: in the current season, the kickers have reached a historic low after week 11. With only 92.9 percent, the success rate for extra points is as bad as it was last time in 1979 (91.3 percent).

NFL: 2-point conversion becomes more relevant

What exactly it is that kickers are making more and more mistakes is probably hard to explain.

The fact is that the 2-point conversion after a touchdown is becoming more and more interesting for the coaches.

In 55 percent of the cases where teams went for two this season, the attempts were successful.

According to “ProFootballTalk”, this means the following: A PAT yields an average of 0.9 points with a 92.9 percent hit rate. 2-point conversions, on the other hand, bring the teams an average of 1.1 points.

Statistically, it makes sense for the coaches to take more risks and rely more on the 2-point conversion, now that the extra points no longer seem to be a safe bet.

Also because the rate is likely to deteriorate even further in the coming weeks. Winter is approaching and the colder weather conditions will not make it any easier for the kickers, as experience shows.