Tag: Lou Hedley

Giants work out several punters with Jamie Gillan injured

The New York Giants worked out Nolan Cooney and four other punters after Jamie Gillan (hamstring) popped up on the injury report.

New York Giants punter Jamie Gillan was a surprise addition to the injury report on Friday, being listed as questionable with a left hamstring strain.

With only two days before their Sunday night kickoff, the Giants hosted several punters in the event Gillan is unable to play against the Cincinnati Bengals.

Among those in attendance was Nolan Cooney, a former Syracuse punter who has played for the New Orleans Saints, Arizona Cardinals, Indianapolis Colts, and Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

In four career games, Cooney has punted 13 times for 592 yards (45.5 ypp) with two being downed inside the 20-yard line.

Punters Pressley Harvin, Matt Haack, Lou Hedley, and Ty Zentner were also in attendance for the private workouts.

None of the five punters who worked out were immediately signed but that could come on Saturday if the Giants opt to place linebacker Kayvon Thibodeaux (wrist) on injured reserve (IR).

Given that Gillan also serves as the team’s holder on point after and field goal attempts, whoever the Giants sign would also have to take on that responsibility.

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Saints work out two punters despite Matthew Hayball winning initial position battle

Saints work out two punters in lieu of Matthew Hayball winning the initial position battle

The New Orleans Saints have had a significant burst of workouts Monday evening, including both receivers and punters. As for the punting side of things, they worked out Trenton Gill and Corliss Waitman, per NewOrleans.Football’s Nick Underhill. These workouts come only days after undrafted rookie Matthew Hayball won the initial starting position battle at punter over incumbent from 2023 Lou Hedley.

Neither player has had an exceptional start to their NFL career, however, both have starting experience at one point or another. Gill moved to the NFL in the 2022 NFL draft after spending four seasons at North Carolina State, where he would receive First-team All-ACC honors in 2021 and Third-team All-ACC honors in 2019. After being drafted in the seventh round at pick 255 by the Chicago Bears, he would end up as the starter in both 2022 and 2023. He accrued 133 punts there for 5,163 yards (46.1 average) and 38 inside the 20-yard line (28.6%). It is worth noting that his career long was a 76 yarder, which may be why the Saints took a look into him.

Waitman has had a much different football career, going undrafted in 2020 and being picked up by the Pittsburgh Steelers, where he would reside on their practice squad before being waived. He would then bounce around from the Las Vegas Raiders to the New England Patriots before coming back to Pittsburgh to get two games worth of opportunity, where he would punt 7 times for 365 yards (52.1 average) with only 1 inside the 20. In 2022 he ended up with the Denver Broncos where he would start the whole season, putting up 96 punts (most in the NFL that season) for 4,470 yards (46.6 average) and 30 inside the 20-yard line (31.3%). His career long is a 63 yarder, however he has not played in a regular season game since that season, as he would go to the practice squad of the New England Patriots for 2023 and Chicago Bears for 2024.

Ultimately, both may just be in consideration for pickups down the road pending the performance of Hayball. Or, maybe they want to retain one on the practice squad just in case of injury. We will see in the coming days if they want to make another addition at the position or if this was just for research. But at this time, neither has been signed, also per Nick Underhill.

Matthew Hayball showcased leg talent, consistency to win punter battle

Matthew Hayball defeated Lou Hedley in the Saints’ punter battle. Dennis Allen listed three key factors in that decision:

The New Orleans Saints had the potential of major special teams changes going into this season. Lou Hedley and Blake Grupe were both competing for their jobs after questionable first seasons in the Black and Gold.

New Orleans brought two undrafted free agents. Matthew Hayball was brought in to challenge Hedley at punter and Grupe had to contend with Charlie Smyth at kicker. Grupe held on to his spot, but Hayball looked good enough in Saints training camp for the team to make a change at punter.

Dennis Allen explained the decision as coming down these three factors: age, ability and consistency. “Hayball is younger. I think he’s got a little bit more leg talent. Over the course of the last couple weeks of practice, (Hayball) was a little bit more consistent than Lou.”

Through the preseason, Hayball had a better averages in yards per punt and net yardage, which subtracts return yardage from the punt yardage. Hayball also had a longest punt of the preseason.

Most importantly, Allen called the rookie the more consistent player. Allen still believes Hedley is talented and will be “punting in our league again,” but consistency can’t be understated. If you’re more talented and more reliable, the job is typically yours.

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Saints waive Lou Hedley, making a big change at punter

The New Orleans Saints waived Lou Hedley, making a big change at punter. It looks like it’ll be Matthew Hayball punting this year but he isn’t out of the woods yet:

The New Orleans made a big change at punter and waived Lou Hedley, as first reported by NewOrleans.Football’s Mike Triplett. Obviously we’ll have to wait and make sure they don’t add someone else, but that suggests rookie punter Matthew Hayball won the job after a spirited competition throughout the summer. He’ll be the fourth punter for the Saints in five years after Hedley won the job from Blake Gillikin, who had replaced Thomas Morstead.

Hayball signed with the Saints as an undrafted free agent in the spring, having played college football at Vanderbilt. Like Hedley he hails from Australia but Hayball showed better hang time and distance on his kicks throughout training camp. When Hedley consistently came up short in the preseason games with too many line-drive punts and a poorly-timed touchback, it seemed to seal the deal.

Good luck to Hedley on his next opportunity. He was one of the better stories in the Saints locker room and he’ll land on his feet wherever he goes next. As for Hayball? We’ve seen the Saints dismiss all of their specialists and bring in someone new before if they weren’t getting the desired results. Maybe that repeats this time. Roster cuts will be finalized at 3 p.m. CT. on Tuesday but more movement is expected throughout the week.

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Countdown to Kickoff: Matthew Hayball is Saints Player of Day 43

Our Saints player of the day is Australian native Matthew Hayball. The former Vanderbilt punter is ready to make a name for himself:

Our countdown to kickoff for the New Orleans Saints continues with Day 43! Today’s Saints player of the day is punter Matthew Hayball. Let’s get to know the rookie.

  • Name (Age): Matthew Hayball (27)
  • Position: Punter
  • Height, weight: 6-foot-0, 189 pounds
  • Relative Athletic Score: N/A
  • 2024 salary cap hit: $798,333
  • College: Vanderbilt
  • Drafted: Undrafted in 2023 (New Orleans Saints)
  • NFL experience: 1st year

The Saints continued their trend of Australian punters when they signed Hayball to the team. He joins Australian punter Lou Hedley who the team signed last year. It’s worth noting that Hayball’s contract included $35,000 in guarantees whereas Hedley was guaranteed just $10,000 last offseason.

He played three years at Flordia Atlantic before transferring to Vanderbilt. In his final year at Vanderbilt, he punted the ball 57 times for 2,713 yards. With a 47.6 average distance, he ranked in the top-ten in college football for yards per attempt.

Hayball is looking to compete with Hedley for the starting job. He has a real shot at taking that position, as Hedley struggled last season. As we mentioned, Hayball can boot the football, and this is something that Hedley struggles to do, as his 43-yard average ranked 37th in the NFL. Hedley has worked to improve but Hayball is going to push him, and he might just push past him.

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Saints brought in another Australian punter to compete with Lou Hedley

The Saints are committed to the Aussie punting style. They signed Australian punter Matthew Hayball to compete with Lou Hedley:

The New Orleans Saints are zigging when the rest of the NFL is zagging, at least on special teams. They’re committed to making the Australian style of punting work in the NFL. After signing and starting former Miami punter Lou Hedley (a Mandurah, Australia native) last year, they’ve brought in Vanderbilt punter Matthew Hayball (from Geelong, Australia) to compete with him.

There are some pretty significant differences between the two despite their shared nationality; Hedley is from a smaller town on Australia’s west coast, while Hayball comes from the more populous southern coast 36 hours’ drive away. Hedley is three years Hayball’s senior, too. And as far as their performance on the football field goals, Hayball punts with his left leg, while Hedley uses his right.

What about their performance? Last season, Hedley was criticized for averaging the fewest yards per punt (43.0) and shortest hang time (4.04 seconds) in the NFL. Hayball averaged 47 yards per punt but just 3.88 seconds at Vanderbilt. While he’s been working on increasing his hang time — anything over 4.3 seconds is good, by NFL standards — what matters most is how he’s performed in games. And Hayball will get opportunities to test that training.

But accuracy matters, too. Hedley placed 41.3% of his punts inside the opposing 20-yard line, and only 5.3% of his punts resulted in a touchback. That’s top-10 in each category. Bu just 32% of his punts were fair catches, which was right in line with the league average.

Here’s how Hayball compared at Vanderbilt in 2023: 44.1% of his punts landed inside the 20, 6.7% were touchbacks, and 23.7% were fairly caught. He gave the opposing team more return opportunities, which is probably explained by that poor hangtime.

If Hayball can work on that and continue to work from greater range than Hedley while remaining accurate in his placement, he just might win this job. It says a lot that the Saints guaranteed $35,000 of his contract compared to just $10,000 in the deal Hedley signed last offseason. But the Saints are making a risky gamble with this Aussie style of punting. They’re betting that their coverage unit can get downfield in a shorter time than other teams around the league and limit return opportunities, even if it comes at a sacrifice of yards per punt. That thin margin for error didn’t hurt them too often last year. Let’s see if it pays off again in 2024.

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Saints punter Lou Hedley has chosen a new jersey number

Australian punter Lou Hedley has chosen a new jersey number in his second season with the Saints:

There isn’t a new punter kicking for the New Orleans Saints, but the one they have will be wearing a new number. Second-year pro Lou Hedley has given up his No. 39 jersey to switch to the more-appealing No. 15, per the team website. It’s a new number for him after he wore No. 94 in college at Miami.

So who will be wearing his old jersey number? Right now, that’s been assigned to rookie kicker Charlie Smyth. So the Saints’ Australian punter will be wearing No. 15 and their Irish kicker is using No. 39.

Fans should expect some competition to be brought in for Hedley, though it’s likelier to be a rookie free agent signing than a veteran pickup. While the Saints’ coaching staff were largely pleased with Hedley’s performance in his rookie year, he struggled to give his coverage team much hang time or room to work with. He ranked last in the league in both hang time (4.03 seconds) and yards per punt (43). We rated him with a D in our rookie report cards at the end of the year.

Still, it’s possible Hedley beats his competition again and earns another year in black and gold. If he does overcome that challenge, he’ll be wearing No. 15.

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New Orleans Saints sign international kicker Charlie Smyth from Northern Ireland

The New Orleans Saints are signing international kicker Charlie Smyth from Northern Ireland. He’ll have a great opportunity in black and gold:

Here’s some competition for Blake Grupe. The Athletic’s Kalyn Kahler reports that the New Orleans Saints are signing rookie kicker Charlie Smyth as part of the NFL’s International Pathway Program. Smyth hails from Northern Ireland and previously worked as a goalkeeper for County Down’s Gaelic football team.

He’s only been kicking an NFL football since August, but the 22-year-old is already good from distances of 60 yards in practice. He’ll have a chance to develop with a respected special teams coaching staff and possibly push Grupe. We’ll see if he can perform in a new environment over the summer.

The Saints haven’t shied away from adding international players before. Their punter Lou Hedley is Australian, and special teams coordinator Darren Rizzi values the different skill sets that players from foreign backgrounds can offer.

Because Smyth is joining the Saints as an IPP player, he will not count towards the 90-man offseason roster limit for training camp. Odds are stronger for him to hang on with the team’s practice squad after roster cuts in September than to unseat Grupe altogether, but you never know. Stranger things have happened in the NFL.

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No Saints players led their positions in 2024 Pro Bowl Games fan voting

No current New Orleans Saints players led their positions in fan voting for the 2024 Pro Bowl Games, but two of their former teammates did:

This is tough. No current New Orleans Saints players led their positions in fan voting for the 2024 Pro Bowl Games, but two of their former teammates did while playing for other teams: New York Jets punter Thomas Morstead and Miami Dolphins left tackle Terron Armstead both led the AFC in fan votes at their positions.

Maybe the Saints shouldn’t have let them go. Morstead was teammates with Armstead in Miami last year, but he’s continuing to play at a high level in the years since the Saints cut him to open the door for his successor Blake Gillikin. Gillikin was also released earlier this year in favor of Lou Hedley, who has experienced an up-and-down rookie year in the NFL.

As for Armstead: the Saints’ uncertainty at left tackle speaks for itself, though his situation was more complicated. On top of the serious salary cap implications involved, Armstead’s injury history made it tough to justify re-signing him. Even if they had kept Armstead, they would need an expensive insurance policy. Injuries have limited him to just 9 games this season for the Dolphins.

Fan voting is just one part of the process — coaches and the players themselves will also have ballots, so it’s possible some Saints players end up making the cut. And there’s always the possibility they can get in as alternates should starters opt out or are unavailable while playing in the Super Bowl. The NFL announced positional leaders in fan votes on Wednesday, with the AFC and NFC player rosters scheduled for release at 7 p.m. CT on NFL Network and NFL+.

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Report: Alvin Kamara, Lou Hedley will play through illness vs. Buccaneers

NOF’s Nick Underhill reports that running back Alvin Kamara and punter Lou Hedley will play against the Bucs despite being questionable with illness:

There’s no quit in this New Orleans Saints team. Several players were listed on the injury report after either missing practice or being limited participants due to an illness going around — running back Alvin Kamara and punter Lou Hedley were both listed as questionable for Sunday’s game with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers because of it. But NewOrleans.Football’s Nick Underhill reports that both of them will suit up on Sunday afternoon at Raymond James Stadium.

That’s good news. The Saints didn’t have an alternative to Hedley as a punter, and he has a heavy workload: Hedley’s 65 attempts this season are 14th-most among punters around the league. The rookie from Australia has had a rough season (his 4.02 seconds of average hang time are lowest in the league) but the team will need him against the Bucs.

As for Kamara: he’s been New Orleans’ only viable running back for much of the year with Jamaal Williams (73 carries for 222 yards) and Kendre Miller (28 rushes for 83 yards) both looking like massive disappointments after an overhyped offseason. Taysom Hill has been the team’s second-best rusher with 73 attempts for 349 yards on the ground, though a foot injury has slowed him down in recent weeks.

Kamara missed three games with a suspension and still ranks second on the team in receptions (73) and third in yards (462), though too many of his touches have been panicked checkdowns from Derek Carr as opposed to well-designed screens and big-play wheel routes like we’ve seen in the past. Hopefully Kamara can make a greater impact in Tampa Bay against a defense that has limited him to 84, 37, and 31 scrimmage yards in their last three meetings.

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