I’m not….. https://t.co/Ms9up9OAQa pic.twitter.com/aAqjzyGRQn
— Wil Lutz (@wil_lutz5) October 30, 2020
Wil Lutz is willing to do a lot to help the New Orleans Saints win football games. Kick field goals from 60 yards out? He’s your man. Execute an onside kick? He’s game. Lining up at the X-receiver spot and running a deep corner route? Maybe call up someone else.
The Saints have been hit hard by injuries and COVID-19 absences to the wide receiver corps, taking out three of their top five options for Sunday’s road game with the Chicago Bears: starters Michael Thomas and Emmanuel Sanders are unavailable, as is breakout rookie Marquez Callaway. So when a fan jokingly suggested it’s time for Lutz to try out in a big spot, he quickly shot the suggestion down.
Lutz referenced a botched trick play against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers back in 2017, his own rookie year, when the Saints called him for to take off and run after a faked field goal. He was stopped short on 4th-and-5 by Buccaneers linebacker Kwon Alexander, which made for a painful collision between the specialist and a defender with 30 or 40 pounds on him and a full head of steam.
So that’s one option down. Fortunately, the Saints have plenty of other weapons to call on against Chicago, like Offensive Player of the Year candidate Alvin Kamara. If Lutz has his way, he’ll be kicking a number of extra-point attempts after a series of Kamara touchdowns on Sunday.
