Ben Sauls just sounds like an NFL kicker.
Literally.
Sauls proved so to the scouts and team personnel from across the NFL during Pitt’s pro day last month.
“I know today especially,” Sauls said at pro day, “people wanted to hear the ball off my foot.”
Seriously? Scouts care about the sound?
Absolutely so, Sauls says.
“As a kicker, if you made me close my eyes and listen to four or five guys I could tell you who’s hitting the best ball or who’s hitting the strongest ball,” Sauls said from the UPMC Rooney Sports Complex. “So that sound off the foot is really important, especially if you can get down close and personal. A little different than at the combine — coordinators are up in the stands (there), so it’s a little bit different visually and obviously hearing it having guys here on the floor with me.”
Sauls “sounded” enough like an NFL kicker to the Pittsburgh Steelers, who on Saturday signed Sauls as an undrafted free agent.
A lefty, Sauls handed kickoffs and placekicks each of the past three seasons after he served solely as a kickoff specialist as a redshirt freshman in 2021.
Last season, Sauls made 21 of 24 field-goal attempts and all 44 of his extra-point tries. He made six of seven field goals tried from 50 yards out or more to set a Pitt record for most such makes in a season. Sauls tied the Pitt record for longest field goal with a 58-yard boot against California in addition to twice hitting 57-yarders.
And Sauls did it all while performing during home games in the less-than-ideal weather that is Pittsburgh.
“That’s huge,” Sauls said. “I’ve gotten a lot of props from a lot of different teams in the NFL that, ‘You had a great career — and you also did it in (Acrisure Stadium).’ And so I knew that coming here. (Former Pitt kicker) Alex Kessman was always like, ‘If you can kick here, you can kick anywhere.’ So I have carried that mindset with me. It’s certainly helped me out. It’s a resume-builder — no doubt about it.”
And the experiences certainly will help him with his new team. While Sauls has virtually no chance to beat out 11-year incumbent and reigning Pro Bowl kicker Chris Boswell, the Steelers typically have at least two kickers on their training camp and preseason roster. A strong preseason could earn Sauls a job with another team, or of course Sauls could be insurance against a Boswell injury.