Age: 30 (Nov.
18)
8th
season in pro football, 3rd with Patriots
College: Texas
A & M
Height: 5’8” Weight: 182
Prelude:
The
barefoot-kicking Franklin booted 44 field goals out of 73 attempts (60.3 %) in
college and had two of over 60 yards in a game against Baylor in 1976. The
Philadelphia Eagles, having endured significant problems with placekicking in
1978, selected him in the third round of the ’79 NFL draft. He had an
outstanding rookie season, hitting on 23 of his 31 field goal attempts,
including a team-record 59-yard kick at Dallas, and all 36 of his PATs.
However, he clashed with Head Coach Dick Vermeil and, following a lesser year
in 1980, withstood a challenge in ’81. He bounced back with 20 field goals out
of 31 attempts. After two more seasons in Philadelphia, Franklin was traded to
the Patriots in 1984. He had his two best years from a field goal percentage
standpoint, hitting on 22 of 28 attempts in ’84 (78.6 %) and 24 of 30 in 1985
(80.0 %) when the club won the AFC Championship.
1986 Season Summary
Appeared in
all 16 games
[Bracketed
numbers indicate league rank in Top 20]
Kicking
Field goals –
32 [1]
Most field
goals, game – 4 vs. Indianapolis 9/7, vs. Atlanta 11/2
Field goal
attempts – 41 [1, tied with Kevin Butler]
Most field
goal attempts, game – 4 vs. Indianapolis 9/7, at Buffalo 10/26, vs. Atlanta
11/2
Field goal
percentage – 78.0 [5]
PATs – 44 [3,
tied with Pat Leahy, Chuck Nelson & Rich Karlis]
PAT attempts
– 45 [4, tied with Rich Karlis]
Longest field
goal – 49 yards vs. Indianapolis 9/7
Scoring
Field Goals –
32
PATs – 44
Points – 140
[1]
Postseason: 1
G (AFC Divisional playoff at Denver)
Field goals –
1
Field goal
attempts – 1
PATs – 2
PAT attempts
– 2
Longest field
goal – 38 yards
Awards & Honors:
2nd
team All-NFL: AP
1st
team All-AFC: UPI, Pro Football Weekly
Pro Bowl
Patriots went
11-5 to finish first in the AFC East while ranking second in the NFL in scoring
(412 points). Lost AFC Divisional playoff to Denver Broncos (22-17).
Aftermath:
Franklin’s
performance dropped off significantly in 1987, as he made good on just 15 of 26
field goal attempts (57.7 %), and his career ended with Miami in ’88. Overall,
Franklin kicked 177 field goals out of 264 attempts (67.0%) and added 341 PATs
with 14 misses for a total of 872 points. Of those totals, 93 of 125 field goal
tries (74.4 %), 163 extra points, and 442 points came with the Patriots, where
he had his best seasons. In the postseason, he was 16 of 22 on field goals and
made all 27 of his extra point attempts. Franklin received first-team
all-conference honors once, second-team recognition after one other season, and
was selected to one Pro Bowl.
--
Highlighted Years features players who were consensus
first-team All-League* selections or league* or conference** leaders in the
following statistical categories:
Rushing:
Yards, TDs (min. 10)
Passing:
Yards, Completion Pct., Yards per Attempt, TDs, Rating
Receiving:
Catches, Yards, TDs (min. 10)
Scoring: TDs,
Points, Field Goals (min. 5)
All-Purpose:
Total Yards
Defense:
Interceptions, Sacks
Kickoff
Returns: Average
Punt Returns:
Average
Punting:
Average
*Leagues
include NFL (1920 to date), AFL (1926), AFL (1936-37), AAFC (1946-49), AFL
(1960-69), WFL (1974-75), USFL (1983-85)
**NFC/AFC
since 1970
