When Mohamed Sanu was traded from Atlanta to New England last year in exchange for a second-round pick, he assumed more than just his duties as a wide receiver.
Sanu’s arrival meant the Patriots had someone new to try out returning punts. Their plan entering the season was to have undrafted rookie Gunner Olszewski be the man for the job, however, the former Bemidji State cornerback suffered multiple injuries that landed him on injured reserve.
This left the Patriots with two players with punt return experience in Julian Edelman and Patrick Chung. Both were extremely vital in their main roles, so the Patriots were reluctant to throw either on the field to return punts.
Sanu recorded nine punt returns for 54 yards in 2019. Most often, he was used to fair catch, so that the kicking team could not pin New England back any further with a bounce.
Now, it seems that in offseason full of uncertainty (including his recovery from an ankle injury) Sanu is practicing bringing in punts. These aren’t just any old punts, however, they are being projected over a house.
The house probably won’t be making an appearance on the game field next season, but it could help Sanu in the tracking of a ball in the sky. He’s not watching it come off of a punter’s foot. The ball has to be located in the air and brought in.
Stranger techniques have been cited for helping athletes around the NFL.
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