Game-winning routine

Chris Boswell is getting accustomed to delivering game-winning kicks but he isn’t necessarily developing a taste for such situations. “If that’s what it comes down to, that’s what it comes down to,” he said. “I hope it doesn’t.”It did on Nov. 12 at Indianapolis, and Boswell responded with a 33-yard field goal as time expired in a 20-17 win over the Colts. It did again on Nov. 26 against Green Bay, and this time Boswell came through with a 53-yard yard field goal that split the uprights with no time left in regulation in a 31-28 decision over the Packers. On Sunday night in Cincinnati, Boswell connected from 38 yards away on the last play of regulation and beat the Bengals, 23-20. “You try to make it the same routine every time,” he said. “A kick is a kick and you don’t want to put any more pressure on it. You just want to do the same thing every time and hopefully put it through like we did.” Boswell has four career game-winning kicks (inside of one minute remaining in regulation or in overtime) in the regular season and another in the 2015 postseason in Cincinnati (a 35-yard effort with 14 seconds left in what became an 18-16 win) on his resume. His latest effort came after Bengals safety Josh Shaw had commenced his rush well in advance of the snap on what had been a 43-yard attempt and contacted Boswell’s right foot on Boswell’s follow through. Boswell regrouped after an offsides penalty had been assessed and kicked the ball through from 38 yards away to win the game.“It basically felt like I kicked the corner of a wall,” he said. “I kicked the ball, which (punter) Jordan (Berry) was still holding, and then (Shaw’s) foot was at the other end of it. It was kinda my foot smashing into his foot, basically. It stung for a bit but it didn’t affect the (second) kick at all. “That’s not an accident at all. If you look in the NFL for the last two years multiple teams have done it, either if it’s running into it, blocking the kick, doing something. Seattle did it last year against the Bills, the Ravens did it against us last year and now Cincinnati. “You’re not jumping offsides that bad without just trying to run into the kicker.” Boswell said whistles aren’t blown in such situations, the way they are when a pass rusher that’s offsides has an unabated path to the quarterback. “They just let it go,” he said. “If they block it, they block it. And if I make it we can decline the penalty, so I just try to stay with it. Jordan had different ideas, so he just held onto the ball as long as he could because he saw them jump offsides. I was so focused on the football I wasn’t really paying attention. “You have to bounce back. You don’t have much time. They just put the ball down and the (play) clock starts winding again. You have to try to find that same routine and stay with it.” Such situations require the type of calm Boswell has always displayed. “I try to be,” he said. “You just have to take it kick by kick and just slow things down and just kind of stay in your own routine and just do what you do every time.” Vote: Steelers to the Pro Bowl