DENVER—There is someone, somewhere who is much smarter than anyone attached to this article, who can explain molecular weight in relation to air density, air "drag" and the physics of it all. Long snapper JJ Jansen spent a decent portion of Thursday trying to do so, particularly in how it relates to sports, and as one of the great orators of our time—or at least the Panthers locker room—he did so well. But for brevity's sake, allow us to surmise…the ball travels farther and higher in thinner air.
Things of this sort are typically measured in millimeters and milliseconds, so one has to wonder, does it really make that marked of a difference in a game?
"Sure, it does," answered special teams coordinator Tracy Smith this week, ahead of the Carolina Panthers Week 8 trip to Denver to face the Broncos. There can be a small difference seen on passes, but typically only when they are rainbow balls thrown downfield. Most quarterbacks throw on a line. The biggest area of difference is on punts and kicks, where the ball has to first travel up, before coming down, something Smith has seen time and again.
"I worked in top of Utah for three years, had two games in Mexico City, played a game in Wyoming. Anything high altitude travels a little farther (and) harder to breathe."
There was much ado during the week about Panthers players combatting the fatigue caused by the thinner air and elevation of Denver. But while that conversation focused more on dealing with the human aspect of elevation, there is an entirely separate conversation to be had on how it changes the trajectory of a ball.
Panthers punt and kick returner Raheem Blackshear has never played in altitude before, so he's spent more time in the film room this week, noting the changes of a game on Empower Field at Mile High Stadium.
"I've been in a lot of film study on the punter, you know, just trying to figure out how he hit the ball and everything," Blackshear said. "Definitely, what Tracy is saying that you definitely get more out of the punts and stuff like that. So, it's going to be higher, more hang time, farther and everything. It's definitely something I'm looking forward to seeing."
The extra hang time can change an entire return plan.
"From talking to (Tracy), (Broncos punter Riley Dixon) is going to be a couple extra seconds and it is (significant)," Blackshear admitted.
The hang-time is a two-way street, as it should also be higher for Panthers punter Johnny Hekker, helping out his coverage time. Hekker has only played in Denver once since joining the NFL in 2012, during the 2018 season while still with the Los Angeles Rams. For 15 games that season, Hekker's average hang time was 4.3 seconds. But during Week 6 in Denver, that time was 4.69 seconds.
Blackshear has 23 kickoff returns so far this season, for 589 yards (averaging 25.6 per return) with a long of 43 yards. He has 10 punt returns for 94 yards (average 9.4 pre return) with one fair catch. Since this is Blackshear's first time playing at elevation, he plans to arrive early for pre-game and check out the elements for himself.
"I'm definitely going to get out there early and catch punts," Blackshear revealed. "I plan on getting there maybe 3 to 4 hours before the game and I'll go out there and catch puns with these googles I got that flash to help me out. They flash, just to get my eyes adjusted."
The goggles could help. Having a deep understanding of how the metrological elements affect the air probably helps too. But for Tracy Smith, at the end of the day, the solution is simple.
"Oh, the same way you plan against any punter, kicker that kicks it farther than usual," offered Smith. "Just back up a little bit."
