Punters Matter Too: Ranking the NFL’s 5 best at the position

DETROIT, MI - NOVEMBER 15: Jack Fox #3 of the Detroit Lions punts the ball during the fourth quarter against the Washington Football Team at Ford Field on November 15, 2020 in Detroit, Michigan. (Photo by Nic Antaya/Getty Images)
DETROIT, MI - NOVEMBER 15: Jack Fox #3 of the Detroit Lions punts the ball during the fourth quarter against the Washington Football Team at Ford Field on November 15, 2020 in Detroit, Michigan. (Photo by Nic Antaya/Getty Images) /
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Tress Way, Washington Football Team  (Photo by Will Newton/Getty Images)
Tress Way, Washington Football Team  (Photo by Will Newton/Getty Images) /

4. Tress Way, Washington Football Team

Since Tress Way entered the NFL, he has been Mr. Consistent. Way was an undrafted free agent out of the Oklahoma in 2013 but he didn’t make his NFL debut until 2014 with Washington. And while he earned a spot at No. 4, it should be noted that he’s not necessarily had an oustanding individual season.

Throughout Way’s career, you can’t point to one season and say he was the best punter in the NFL. While Way that might be the case, just about every season was either good or very good for Way. This past season was maybe the worst season of his career but, at the same time, it wasn’t bad by any stretch.

Way has played seven years with Washington and one thing that he has been good at is distance control. Way has constantly ranked in the top 10 of punts inside the 20-yard line. While he has some great distance control, he doesn’t have the strongest leg in the world, nor the best hang time numbers.

The main reason that Way is this high on this list, though, is the lack of unknown with him. It’s very hard to have a punter who consistently is good but Way has somehow managed to do it. If you are a fan of punters who are can have big seasons and games but are inconsistent, then Way is not your guy. However, iif you like punters who will always just be good but never better, then Way is, well, the way you want to look.