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Five sign free agent deals
Five Kansas State football players spent Monday signing free agent contracts with teams in the National Football League.
Center Mike Johnson signed with the Kansas City Chiefs; Cedrick Williams with the Houston Texans; Tony Madison with the Miami Dolphins; Joe Rheem with the Buffalo Bills; and, Jon Doty with the Carolina Panthers.
Anyone know anything about him? Can he challenge Lindell?
Overall: Rheem saw time as a place kicker in his true freshman season in 2001 as was the team's fulltime place kicker from 2002-'04. He split duties on kickoffs but is not a kickoff specialist prospect for the NFL level. Rheem connected on 9-of-12 field goal attempts in 2002, 12-of-17 in 2003 and 13-of-15 in 2004.
Rheem isn't pretty, doesn't have great trajectory and doesn't have nearly the leg strength of Nugent or Rayner, but he has very good accuracy, consistency and mechanics. Rheem will never be able to kickoff in the NFL and his range on FGA's is limited, but he could be worth bringing in to training camp as an undrafted rookie free agent because of his efficiency as a place kicker.
One of the most prolific scorers in Kansas State history, Rheem carried on the family tradition of kicking for the Wildcats. The team's primary placekicker for four seasons, his brother, Jamie, was a two-time All-American kicker at KSU.
At Wichita Collegiate High School, Joe earned All-America honors from Parade. He was a member of Prep Star's "Dream Team" and selected to Wichita Eagle's Top 33 squad. Rheem was a three-time first-team Class 3A All-State kicker and a unanimous selection as the All-MCAA kicker for three seasons.
A three-time all-league punter, Rheem also played quarterback and led the Spartans to the Class 3A state championship as a senior, earning all-league and honorable mention 3A all-state accolades as a quarterback. He made 11-of-13 field goals, including a season-long 55-yarder and converted 76 of 78 extra-point kicks. Rheem threw for more than 1,700 yards and had a 48-yard average as a punter his junior year. He also lettered twice for the state-champion golf team.
Rheem joined tailback Darren Sproles as the only true freshmen to contribute at Kansas State in 2001. Rheem scored 32 points on 4-of-6 field goals and 20-of-22 extra points. He added 80 points in 2002, as he was successful on 9-of-12 field goal attempts. Rheem picked up All-Big 12 Conference third-team honors in 2003, when he totaled a career-high 103 points on 67-of-68 extra point conversions and 12-of-17 field goal attempts.
Rheem was a semifinalist for the Lou Groza Award (nation's top kicker) in 2004, as he converted 13-of-15 field goals and 37-of-38 PATs for 76 points. He finished his career with 291 points, the third-best overall total in school history behind Darren Sproles (294, 2001-04) and Martin Gramatica (349, 1994-95, 97-98). He connected on 38-of-50 field goals, ranking behind Gramatica (54) and his brother, Jamie (39, 1996-97, 99-2000) on the KSU career-record list. He also made 177-of-187 extra points, 10 short of Gramatica's Wildcat record.
ANALYSIS
Positives: Very accurate field goal specialist inside the 45-yard line … Has an average snap-to-toe time of 1.34 seconds … Gets a good rise out of his kicks, hitting the ball quickly (2½-step kicker) … Shows good leg control in placing his kickoffs … Capable of making pressure kicks and handling the ball in poor weather conditions … Has good balance on his plant foot, showing proper leg extension.
Negatives: Lacks the leg strength to kick long, especially on kickoffs (averaged 55.8 yards per attempt with seven of his 61 kicks sailing out of bounds in 2004) … Gets little height behind his kickoff attempts and his average hang-time of 3.85 seconds prevents the coverage unit from getting downfield quick enough to prevent the long return … Very inconsistent on long-range field goal attempts and rarely do his kickoffs sail into the end zone … Takes a half step -- "cheater's step" -- on his delivery towards the ball, covering more than three yards before connecting with the pigskin.
INJURY REPORT
No injuries reported.
AGILITY
CAMPUS: 5.04 in the 40-yard dash … 30 5/8-inch arm length … 8 3/8-inch hands.
HIGH SCHOOL
Attended Wichita (Kan.) Collegiate High School, playing football for coach Mike Gehrer … Named to Parade magazine's All-American team … Was only kicker named to 57-player squad … Listed as the top kicking prospect in the nation by Rivals.com … Member of Prep Star magazine's "Dream Team" … Selected to Wichita Eagle's Top 33 squad … Three-time first-team Class 3A All-State kicker … Unanimous selection as All-MCAA kicker for three seasons … Three-time all-league punter … Also played quarterback and led the Spartans to the Class 3A state championship as senior, earning all-league and honorable mention 3A all-state accolades as QB … Made 11-of-13 field goals, including a season-long 55-yarder … Converted 76-of-78 extra-point kicks … Threw for more than 1,700 yards … Had 48-yard average as punter his junior year … Also lettered twice for state-champion golf team.
PERSONAL
Business major … Son of Jim and Liza Rheem … Brother, Jamie, was a two-time All-America kicker at Kansas State … Born July 1, 1982 in Wichita, Kan.
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