One tip for Evan McPherson: You can watch the halftime show online after you’re done playing the most important game of football of your life.
McPherson, the Bengals’ rookie kicker, went viral during Super Bowl 2022 last month when he stayed on the field to watch the star-studded performance that featured Snoop Dogg, Mary J. Blige, Eminem, Dr. Dre, 50 Cent, and Kendrick Lamar. Cincinnati’s special teams coordinator, Darrin Simmons, didn’t mince words to The Athletic when he recently discussed McPherson’s decision to stay behind rather than return to the locker room with the rest of the team.
“That’s a sore subject,” Simmons said. “That’s a real sore subject.”
Simmons added how long snapper Clark Harris also took in the halftime show from the best seat in the house at SoFi Stadium but avoided the cameras, unlike McPherson.
The Bengals were behind 13-10 at the half. When the cameras panned to McPherson, he appeared unbothered as the epic show took place in front of his eyes.
Despite Simmons’ frustration, McPherson was in tip-top shape during the second half, making an extra point and a 38-yard field goal. His game-day performance wasn’t enough to carry the Bengals to a Super Bowl victory, however, as Cincinnati fell to the Rams, 23-20.
In his rookie season, McPherson made a name for himself as one of the most prolific kickers in the league. He recorded 42 field goals in the regular season and the postseason, posting 16 during the playoffs for a new NFL record. That included two game-winning kicks to beat the Titans and Chiefs in the tense games leading up to the Super Bowl.
McPherson now holds the Bengals record for most field goals in a single season, in addition to the franchise record for most field goals from 50-plus yards with 12.
Simmons said that he wants McPherson to focus on his consistency with kickoffs as he approaches his sophomore season.
“We certainly need to improve kickoffs, the consistency on kickoffs,” Simmons said, per The Athletic. “One of my major things this offseason is I’ve got to get his field goal leg to equate to what he does on kickoffs. He has a very, very powerful field goal leg. It’s not that he doesn’t have a powerful kickoff leg, but we’ve got to get that power transferred into kickoffs more consistently than we did this year.”
Although McPherson is now likely focused on getting some R&R after the quick transition between his junior season at Florida, last year’s draft, and the 2021 NFL season, Simmons wants the young kicker to become more well-rounded when training camp comes along.
“He needs to become a better practice kicker and kick better than he has,” he said. “Not that it’s poor, but I think for him to be elite and go over the top, he’s got to kick better in practice and learn new things.”