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The punter is one of the most forgotten positions on an NFL roster. With only a few brave individuals fighting "for the brand" of the big-legged, kick-booming, coffin-cornering 53rd roster spot, punters often get pushed to the side.
Kickers put points on the board, so they are at least known to fantasy football owners. Kickers also get put in the spotlight when they can win (or lose) a game in the final seconds with a field goal or extra point.
Punters don't score, but their contribution is just as important because they play a crucial role in the game-within-a-game known as field position. A good punter can actually make a defense look better than it truly is, and bail out a bad offense.
Like every other position, there is an elite tier of punters who are better than their peers; the best of the best.
To break down the five best punters in the league it is important to first understand what goes into the evaluation. This is not simply the five most powerful kickers. Below is a brief explanation of two advanced metrics used in this ranking, alongside traditional stats like average punt distance, fair catches, touch backs, and longest punt.
For a more in-depth explanation of all punting stats, see this summary by The Koffin Korner.
Net average: While AVG is simply the average distance of a punters punts, Net AVG accounts for touchbacks and return yards, giving a more accurate metric of a punters averaged gain yards per punt.
In 20: The total number of punts that fall inside an opponent's 20-yard line (the 20-yard line is important because a touchback would bring the receiving team out to the 20-yard line). In 20 percentage, or In20%, is the percent of punts that fall within the 20-yard line, and is seen as one of the most important statistics to measure a punter's accuracy and skill.
5. Bryan Anger (Houston Texans)
When the Jacksonville Jaguars selected Bryan Anger with the 70th overall pick in the 2012 NFL Draft, they made him the highest-drafted punter since 1995. Now on his third NFL team, Anger has over 600 career punts, All-Pro recognition, and the ninth-highest yards-per-punt in NFL history.
In 2020, Anger has the forth-highest Net AVG in the league among punters with at least 30 punts, and is second in the NFL in fair-caught punts. In 2019, Anger placed one of the best punts of the year, a 67-yard bomb that dropped at the opponent's one-yard line with just enough back spin to stay out of the end zone, but enough power to roll just inches from the goal line.
4. Jack Fox (Detroit Lions)
Lions rookie Jack Fox is PFF's top-ranked punter in 2020, with a grade of 92.2 (five higher than any other punter). Despite ranking 12th in the NFL in punts with 29, Fox has collected the sixth most punting yards (1530). His 47.7 Net AVG leads the NFL by 2.7 yards, and his 67-yard Week 2 punt is the fourth-longest punt of the season.
With many of the league's top punters performing for over a decade, Fox will have to produce at this clip for more than just nine games to solidify himself in the top tier. But on pace to break the NFL's record for Net AVG in season, the 24-year-old Fox is drawing attention — something punters rarely do.
"We’re not worried about records right now," Fox told the Detroit Free Press. "We’re just worried about winning games.”
3. Michael Dickson (Seattle Seahawks
Of Michael Dickson's 30 punts in 2020, 16 have landed within the opponent's 20-yard line. Dickson's In20% of 53.3 is the second highest in the league amongst qualified punters, and his Net AVG 45.5 yards-per-punt is fourth in the league, just three yards shy of first place.
With just four touchbacks on the year, Dickson is one of the best coffin-corner specialists in football. The former Texas punter's ability to kick un-returnable balls was one of the reasons the Seattle Seahawks traded up to get him in the 2018 draft, and why pundits didn't scoff at Seahawks GM John Schneider for doing so.
2. Thomas Morstead (New Orleans Saints)
Heading into the 2019 season, the New Orleans Saints made Thomas Morstead the highest-paid punter in the league, signing the veteran to four year, $15.6 million contract with over $9 million fully guaranteed. Morstead then proceeded to have one of the best seasons of his career.
In 2019, Morstead was second in the NFL in In20% and improved his career yards-per-punt to 46.6, good for sixth in NFL history. While the 34-year-old's YPP has dropped a few yards halfway through 2020, he is once again at the top of In20% leaders, pinning kicks 52% of the time.
Extending a 33-year-old Morstead was part of a concerted effort in New Orleans to improve special teams. In 2019, the Saints locked up Morstead, brought in three new special teams coaches, and signed or extended key special teamers such as Johnson Bademosi and Craig Robertson.
1. Johnny Hekker (Los Angeles Rams)
Johnny Hekker is the best punter in football. The nine-year veteran leads all active players in yards-per-punt, and is just a half-yard behind Shane Lechler for the all-time lead. Hekker has been to four Pro Bowls, was named to four All-Pro teams, led the NFL in total punting yards twice, and was named to the Pro Football Hall of Fame's All-Decade Team of the 2010s.
An undrafted free agent out of Oregon State, Hekker is PFF's ninth rated punter in 2020 with a score of 71.2 and currently leads the NFL with a In20% of 56%. Hekker has 640 career punts, over 30,000 career punting yards, one of the longest punts in NFL history (78 yards), and the longest punt in Super Bowl history (65 yards).
After an October matchup against the Chicago Bears where Hekker punted five times for over 220 yards, teammate Aaron Donald had no issue crowning Hekker.
"The best punter in the National Football League," Donald told the media.
Honorable mentions:
Sam Koch, Baltimore Ravens; Bret Kern, Tennessee Titans; Tress Way, Washington Football Team
