The top-rated punter coming out of high school, Townsend originally signed with the University of Tennessee. He redshirted with the Volunteers in 2016 before transferring to the University of Florida the following season. He didn’t play at all for the Gators in 2017 but would go on to become their starting punter.
In 2018, Townsend burst onto the scene, impressing with his strong leg. His 71-yard punt against LSU tied for the seventh-longest punt in school history. He earned recognition as a semifinalist for the Ray Guy Award for the best punter in college football in both of his two seasons in Florida.
Townsend’s brother, Johnny, also played for the Gators. He was a fifth-round draft pick by the Oakland Raiders in 2018 but is currently a free agent.
Stats:
2018: 13 games played. 51 punts for 2,315 yards. 24 punts inside the 20-yard line.
2019: 13 games played. 42 punts for 1,847 yards. 20 punts inside the 20-yard line.
Combine/pro day results
Height: 6-foot-1
Weight: 191 pounds
Hands: 9 1/8″
Arms: 32 1/8″
40-yard dash: 4.71
10-yard split: 1.64
225-pound bench: N/A
Vertical: N/A
Broad Jump: N/A
20-yard shuttle: N/A
3-Cone Drill: N/A
Highlights & Film:
Fit with the Chiefs:
Townsend was brought in as the successor to the Chiefs’ punter of the last 15 years, Dustin Colquitt. Assistant head coach and special teams coordinator Dave Toub had Townsend ranked as his top-rated punter in the 2020 NFL Draft. He’ll be in what is described as an open competition for the starting punting job with free-agent acquisition Tyler Newsome.
“Tommy [Townsend] is a little [cleaner] in his technique as far as consistency, whereas Tyler [Newsome] is a little more erratic,” Toub told reporters in May. “But the results are the same. They both bomb the ball. We just need to clean Tyler up a bit more. But I’ll tell you what, the competition is going to be real fun.”
One area that could put Townsend over the top in this competition is his ability as a holder. Colquitt was also the holder for Harrison Butker in Kansas City, so the new punter will also have to fill that job. Townsend has experience as a holder for the dating back to high school. Newsome doesn’t have as much experience in that regard. Townsend’s kicker in 2019, Evan McPherson, was nearly perfect on extra points, missing just one on the season. He also was 17-of-19 field goals.
Fake punts are also a part of Townsend’s arsenal. He ran several successful fakes with the Gators, showing off his wheels. At the 2020 NFL Scouting Combine, he had the fastest 40-yard dash among punters.
Even without OTAs and minicamp, it feels like the punting job in Kansas City is Townsend’s to lose. He can secure the job with a good performance to open up training camp and into the preseason, shortened or not.
Chiefs’ undrafted free agent
| Position | Player | School | Article Release Date |
| QB | Shea Patterson | Michigan | 5/26 |
| WR | Maurice Ffrench | Pittsburgh | 5/28 |
| LB | Bryan Wright | Cincinnati | 6/2 |
| OC | Darryl Williams | Miss. St. | 6/6 |
| CB | Hakeem Bailey | West Virginia | 6/8 |
| P | Tommy Townsend | Florida | 6/14 |
| WR | Kalija Lipscomb | Vanderbilt | TBA |
| DB | Rodney Clemons | SMU | TBA |
| OT | Yasir Durant | Missouri | TBA |
| DE | Tershawn Wharton | Missouri S&T | TBA |
| WR | Justice Shelton-Mosley | Vanderbilt | TBA |
| CB | Jalen Julius | Ole Miss | TBA |
| WR | Aleva Hifo | BYU | TBA |
| LB | Omari Cobb | Marshall | TBA |
| WR | Cody White | Michigan St. | TBA |
| CB | Lavert Hill | Michigan | TBA |
| WR | Andre Baccelia | Washington | TBA |
| OG | Jovahn Fair | Temple | TBA |
| CB | Javaris Davis | Auburn | TBA |
[vertical-gallery id=70339]