Kickball.(Baltimore Ravens)(Brief Article)

The game wasn't a thrill a minute, unless you fantasized about a championship game that would feature 21 punts and a big-time role for special teams

Strange dreams, these punters have. Take the Ravens' Kyle Richardson--world champion punter Kyle Richardson, that is--who spent the night before Super Bowl 35 tucked safely asleep in his hotel bed, his dreams adrift in that peaceful punter's place where every corner is a coffin corner, and hang time piles up by the minute.

When game day came around last Sunday, it was as if those dreams came true for Richardson. Of course, his dream game was nightmarish for most of us--a 21-punt snoozefest, which gave a pretty solid boot to the old Super Bowl record of 15 combined punts. Heck, Richardson and his counterpart, the Giants' Brad Maynard, broke the record with 4:11 to play in the third quarter. Both punters are good at their jobs, but let's face it: Their jobs stand as symbols to the ineptitude of their teams' offenses.

"Believe it or not, this is exactly as I envisioned it," Richardson says. "Sitting in the hotel last night, I played it in my head. This is what I was dreaming about. Punting. You all might think I am crazy."

What's crazy is the impact special teams had on Super Bowl 35. Punting, kicking, kick returns--the game turned on little things made big.

"Well, what were you expecting?" says Ravens defensive lineman Tony Siragusa. "This is how we play. Twenty-one punts, that sounds about right."

"Not very exciting, I know," Richardson says.