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Ravens Notebook:
By Aaron Wilson
September 8, 2009
OWINGS MILLS -- Steve Hauschka won the Baltimore Ravens' kicking job over Graham Gano because of his range, accuracy and fundamentals as he takes over for veteran kicker Matt Stover.
In Ravens coach John Harbaugh's estimation, Hauschka has the best mechanics of any young kicker he has watched in a long time. And he accompanied that compliment by referencing Philadelpha Eagles kicker David Akers and Cleveland Browns kicker Phil Dawson.
Hauschka converted 5 of 6 field goals during the preseason, including a 46-yarder against the Atlanta Falcons to wrap up the preseason.
"Obviously we're confident in him or he wouldn't be our kicker," Harbaugh said. "Let's understand this: he's going to miss some kicks. Now if he goes 100 percent and makes them all, we'll all look like geniuses, but that's not going to happen.
"He's going to miss a couple of kicks. The thing we're looking for is how he handles missing a kick just like how does Joe [Flacco] handle throwing a bad pass or Ray [Lewis] missing a tackle. We have to give him that kind of leeway. He's really talented."
