Tag: Matt Haack

Report: Texans work out punters Matt Haack and Pat O’Donnell

The Houston Texans worked out veteran punters Pat O’Donnell and Matt Haack to conclude Week 1.

The Houston Texans want to see if they can get better with their punting unit.

According to Aaron Wilson from KPRC-TV, the Texans worked out veteran punters Matt Haack and Pat O’Donnell Monday.

Haack was last with the Indianapolis Colts where he played 17 games in 2022. The former Buffalo Bills and Miami Dolphins punter averaged 44.8 yards per punt and had 28 inside the 20-yard line with just three touchbacks.

O’Donnell spent the first eight seasons of his career with the Chicago Bears and last year with the Green Bay Packers. The former 2014 sixth-round pick produced 44.5 yards per punt and had 24 punts inside the 20 with one that went for a touchback. O’Donnell also led the league with two punts blocked.

Rookie Ty Zentner punted four times with a 44.0 average and one touchback in the 25-9 loss to the Baltimore Ravens in Week 1.

The Texans also brought in running back Gerrid Doaks and receiver Jared Wayne for visits.

[lawrence-auto-related count=1 category=1365]

Nolan Cooney wins punting job as Cardinals cut Matt Haack

Nolan Cooney wins the punting job for the Cardinals.

A quiet position battle has been decided for the Arizona Cardinals. Nolan Cooney has won the punting job.

The Cardinals announced the release of punter Matt Haack as part of multiple roster moves on Monday.

That leaves Cooney as the only punter left on the roster.

Haack has been an NFL team’s punter every one of his six NFL seasons, although he very likely could get picked up by another team.

That is probably why the Cardinals released him a week ahead of final cuts.

Cooney has been very good in the preseason. In two games, he punted five times, averaging 51.8 yards. Three were downed inside the 20. He booted a 65-yarder, all in air yards, on Saturday against the Kansas City Chiefs.

His net average was 47.6 yards.

Cooney will now also be the holder for kicker Matt Prater and could take over kickoff duties.

[affiliatewidget_smgtolocal]

Listen to the latest from Cards Wire’s Jess Root on his podcast, Rise Up, See Red. Subscribe on Apple podcasts or Spotify.

[lawrence-auto-related count=3 category=1362]

Punter competition pretty even between Matt Haack and Nolan Cooney

The Cardinals have a quietly even roster battle at punter between Nolan Cooney and veteran Matt Haack.

The Arizona Cardinals have a number of roster and position battles in training camp. Before cap started, there was one battle that probably was overlooked by most.

The punter battle between Nolan Cooney and Matt Haack is pretty even.

Both punters have been “pretty decent,” according to special teams coordinator and assistant head coach Jeff Rodgers, via AZCentral Sports’ Jose Romero.

Cooney has been with the team for a while, spending time on the practice squad last year and in previous training camps.

Haack was signed in May after a tryout in rookie minicamp. He has been a starting punter for six seasons.

Both punters have things going in their favor.

Rodgers knows Cooney more from his time on the team. However, Haack has six years of NFL tape.

Cooney can kick off, which would ease the load for veteran kicker Matt Prater.

But Haack, being left-footed, can cause opposing punt returners problems because the ball comes off his foot differently.

Haack has more experience but Cooney is punting the ball well.

Rodgers also notes that holding for extra points and field goals will also be a factor.

Haack obviously did this in his previous stops in the league with Miami, Buffalo and Indianapolis.

“It’s hard to say kind of where things are at right now, because we’re pretty close,” Rodgers told Romero. “See how that plays over the next few weeks.”

Performance in practice and the preseason games will both factor in.

[affiliatewidget_smgtolocal]

Listen to the latest from Cards Wire’s Jess Root on his podcast, Rise Up, See Red. Subscribe on Apple podcasts or Spotify.

[lawrence-auto-related count=3 category=1362]

New P Matt Haack’s 2022 punting stats compared to Andy Lee

We look at what new punter Matt Haack punting stats compare with Andy Lee, the Cardinals’ punter for the last seven seasons.

The Arizona Cardinals made only one change this offseason in their trio of specialists. Back is long snapper Aaron Brewer on a one-year contract and kicker Matt Prater re-signed on a two-year deal.

However, they replaced punter Andy Lee with Matt Haack.

Lee would be 41 years old this coming season, while Haack will turn 29 later thus month.

How did the two stack up statistically last season?

Punting average

Lee’s 47.1 yards per punt was superior to Haack’s last season. Haack averaged 44.8 for the Indianapolis Colts.

Haack has been very consistent since entering the league. He has a career average of 44.5 yards per punt and in five of his six seasons, he has averaged between 44.5 and 45.0 yards.

Net average

Lee also had a better net average of 40.2 compared to Haack’s 39.6.

Net average, of course, factors in the coverage team but Lee’s difference between average and net average is 6.9 yards. Haack’s difference is 5.2 yards.

Haack’s career net is 39.6 while Lee’s is 39.9.

Touchbacks

Generally speaking, punters don’t want touchbacks.

Lee had four last season for a 6.0% average. Haack had only three for a 4.3% average.

Lee’s career touchback rate is 9.0%. Haack’s is 5.8%.

Inside the 20

The best kind of punt is one that is downed inside the opponent’s 20-yard line.

Lee’s inside-the-20 percentage was 26.9%. His career average is 32.5%.

Haack had 40.0% of his punts downed inside the 20 and his career rate is 37.3%.

Lee was a fine punter for the Cardinals. He was also a fantastic holder.

But Haack has been consistently good at avoiding touchbacks and having them downed inside the 20. We will see if this trend continues.

[affiliatewidget_smgtolocal]

Listen to the latest from Cards Wire’s Jess Root on his podcast, Rise Up, See Red. Subscribe on Apple podcasts or Spotify.

[lawrence-auto-related count=3 category=1362]

Cardinals release 3 players, sign P Matt Haack

Matt Haack and Nolan Cooney will compete for the punting job.

The Arizona Cardinals announced a few roster moves on Monday following rookie minicamp. They released three players — kicker Elliott Fry, defensive lineman Manny Jones and linebacker Blake Lynch.

They signed punter Matt Haack, who participated in rookie minicamp as a tryout player along with punter Ty Long.

Fry was signed to a futures deal after the season but, following the re-signing of kicker Matt Prater, his presence on the roster became redundant.

Lynch spent some time on the practice squad last season before getting signed to a futures deal in January.

Jones appeared in four games last season as an undrafted rookie. He bounced between the active roster and the practice squad.

Haack will now compete with Nolan Cooney for the punting job.

He played collegiately at Arizona State and has been in the NFL since 2017, never missing a game.

He played his first four seasons with the Miami Dolphins and then played one season each with the Buffalo Bills and Indianapolis Colts.

He has a career punting average of 44.5 yards and net average of 39.9 yards. He had 28 punts downed inside the 20.

[affiliatewidget_smgtolocal]

Listen to the latest from Cards Wire’s Jess Root on his podcast, Rise Up, See Red. Subscribe on Apple podcasts or Spotify.

[lawrence-auto-related count=3]

[mm-video type=playlist id=01eqbw7fa4ahbvdd03 player_id=01eqbvhghtkmz2182d image=]

Cardinals try out 2 veteran punters at rookie minicamp

They had punters Maat Haack and Ty Long in for a tryout at rookie minicamp.

One position that seems uncertain for the Arizona Cardinals is their punting job. Veteran Andy Lee, the team’s punter for the last six seasons, has not re-signed and the only punter on the roster currently is Nolan Cooney.

The Cardinals opened their rookie minicamp on Friday and only had four tryout players. Two were veteran punters.

Check out who they were.

Listen to the latest from Cards Wire’s Jess Root on his podcast, Rise Up, See Red. Subscribe on Apple podcasts or Spotify.

 

List of Colts free agents who remain unsigned

These Colts free agents remain unsigned.

The Indianapolis Colts have turned their attention to preparing for the 2023 NFL draft, but there are still some free agents available on the market.

Since the start of free agency, about half of the Colts’ free agents have found new homes. You can stay up to date with the latest news and rumors via our free agency tracker.

As we venture deeper into the month of April, here’s a look at the list of Colts free agents who remain unsigned.

Studs and duds from Colts’ 19-10 loss to Titans

Studs and duds from the Colts’ 19-10 loss.

The Indianapolis Colts (3-3-1) continued their cycle of taking one step forward and two steps backward in their 19-10 loss to the Tennessee Titans (4-2) on Sunday at Nissan Stadium.

While the defensive side of the ball proved again to be the better unit, the offense continued to be anemic. They were plagued by turnovers and poor efficiency on third downs.

Here are the studs and duds from the Colts’ Week 7 loss.

Pat McAfee approves of Colts’ new punter

Pat McAfee had a lot of praise for the Colts’ new punter.

Replacing Rigoberto Sanchez was never going to be an easy task for the Indianapolis Colts just as replacing Pat McAfee wasn’t thought to be a walk in the park either all those years ago.

But Sanchez, who wound up becoming McAfee’s successor in 2017, suffered a torn Achilles during practice this week. So general manager Chris Ballard and his front office members went to work to find a replacement for what is likely going to be the entire season.

It just so happened that Matt Haack became available a few days prior to Sanchez’s injury so they scooped him up off free agency.

And McAfee, who attended the preseason finale Saturday night, couldn’t have been more impressed.

It was a strong debut for Haack, who joined the Colts just three days before the preseason finale. He had five punts on the day, four of which pinned the Tampa Bay Buccaneers inside the 15-yard line. Haack averaged 50.6 yards per punt on the day and proved to be a true weapon.

It will be hard to replace Sanchez both in the locker room and on the field, but it appears the Colts may have struck a bit of gold with their latest acquistion.

[mm-video type=playlist id=01eqbwdn1cy47y964q player_id=none image=https://coltswire.usatoday.com/wp-content/plugins/mm-video/images/playlist-icon.png]

Like Colts Wire on Facebook
Follow Colts Wire on Twitter
Follow Kevin on Twitter (@KevinHickey11)

[lawrence-related id=74644,74632,74628]

[listicle id=74631]

Colts sign recently released Bills P Matt Haack

#Colts sign recently released #Bills P Matt Haack:

Matt Araiza won the Buffalo Bills punting job over Matt Haack during the preseason. That decision came down this week.

Haack was not out of work for long.

The Bills announced on Monday that Haack had been released. Now he joins the Indianapolis Colts.

According to Colts Wire, Haack has been added to Indy’s roster.

That comes in wake of the unfortunate news that the Colts’ starting punter, Rigoberto Sanchez, suffered a torn Achilles. His season is done.

The 28-year-old Haack now has a prime opportunity to lock up Indy’s starting spot. He has experience but had a rough 2021 season with the Bills.

Following that, Haack revised his contract to remain in Buffalo but his chances of sticking around seemed line a longshot once Araiza was drafted.

[mm-video type=playlist id=01eqbw1j59gmjw5gdj player_id=none image=https://billswire.usatoday.com/wp-content/plugins/mm-video/images/playlist-icon.png]

[lawrence-related id=104538,104501,104494]