Younghoe Koo has been far, far better than anyone would’ve expected him to be. I liked his college production, but Koo hadn’t been on a team in a bit and was filling some giant, clutch cleats with the team releasing Matt Bryant. I would’ve been content with a pretty good year so that Koo could compete for the gig next year, frankly, especially with the playoffs already out of reach.
Yet Koo has been excellent. He’s missed one extra point, yes, but he’s also 16 of 18 for field goals, has managed two great onside kicks, and recovered a fumble this past weekend against the Panthers. There’s a very good chance he’ll go into next year as the favorite for kicking duties in Atlanta, especially because he also handle kickoffs, which would give the Falcons the opportunity to look for a young, cheap option at punter, if they’re inclined to do so.
For all that—and especially for drilling all four of his field goal tries and recovering that fumble last week—Koo is the NFC Special Teams Player of the Week for the second time this year.
When your kicker hits a 50 yard FG AND recovers a fumble, he better get recognized.
— Atlanta Falcons (@AtlantaFalcons) December 11, 2019
For the second time this season, @YounghoeKoo is the NFC Special Teams Player of the Week!
- https://t.co/i939oWcoiI pic.twitter.com/4M7JYd178S
Incredibly, Matt Bryant never won this particular honor twice in a season with Atlanta, though he did accomplish that way back in 2002 before he ever joined the Falcons. The last Falcon to win Special Teams Player of the Week twice in a single season was the talented Darrien Gordon all the way back in 2001.
All that’s to say that Koo has been an unexpected killer addition to the Falcons, and given how accustomed we’ve become to having a great player manning that position over the last decade-plus, let’s hope he can continue to be one for a long time yet.