FanHouse AndyLee

Remember that great 1987 University of Miami team? With Michael Irvin, the Blades brothers, Melvin Bratton, Daniel Stubbs, that team won the national championship, a year after the more famous 1986 team fell short.

But I doubt there are many fans who could name the only player left from that team in the NFL. It's Giants punter Jeff Feagles, and if you didn't know that, don't feel bad. According to a story Feagles once told, even some of his own Hurricanes teammates who later became his NFL teammates didn't know he was on the team.

But while those Miami teammates didn't know who Feagles was, his Giants teammates appreciate him. In fact, Arthur Staple of Newsday reports that the Giants are rallying to get Feagles in the Pro Bowl:

"He's the best I've ever seen," [linebacker Antonio] Pierce said of Jeff Feagles. "Ever since I got here, he's been deserving of [a Pro Bowl nod]."

Kawika Mitchell said: "You usually measure a punter by his ability to put the ball outside the numbers. Jeff does it whenever he wants to."

Punters are often overlooked as necessities, but not "real football players" or some such silliness. It's all fun and games until the special teams costs you a game. Then, not so much. That's why Andy Lee and Mike Scifres are so well regarded -- and appreciated -- by their teams.

Anyway, in an effort to beef up its special teams, the Steelers used a fourth-round pick on Daniel Sepulveda. Not a very well received move in some parts of the Pittsburgh media; in fact, one writer suggested the team would've been better off with Mike Barr, the free agent that was annually invited to Steelers training camp only to lose the job to whoever the competition was.

Like clockwork, Barr lost out to Sepulveda, was released, but did land a job with the Cardinals. That lasted 11 games until Arizona sent him packing earlier this week. The reason? He was awful, of course. And even without looking at the stats, the fact that the Cards invited Mitch Berger, Tom Rouen and Chris Gardocki to compete for the job is reason enough to think that Barr wasn't faring very well. (For the three of you who care, Berger won the job. Season saved in the desert.)

And for anybody else who thinks punters aren't important, here's what Dr. Z had to say following the Steelers-Dolphins Monday night game: