Tag: Riley Dixon

Rams’ special teams unit will have completely new look under Chase Blackburn

The Rams have already lost 3 specialists and their return man is a free agent, too

Even with as accurate as Matt Gay was last season, making all but two of his field goal attempts, the Los Angeles Rams’ special teams unit was a letdown. Riley Dixon was a below-average punter and they got very little out of Brandon Powell in the return game, resulting in a 29th-place finish in Rick Gosselin’s annual special teams rankings.

Sean McVay must not have been pleased with the way the Rams performed on special teams because coordinator Joe DeCamillis was let go and there are sweeping changes happening across the unit.

Gay already signed with the Colts, long snapper Matthew Orzech landed with the Packers and Riley Dixon has returned to the Broncos. That leaves the Rams without their three primary specialists, none of whom have been replaced yet.

Powell is also a pending free agent and there hasn’t been any movement on that front. Nothing is imminent with Powell and one would think if the Rams were going to bring him back, they’d have done so already.

New special teams coordinator Chase Blackburn is going to have a special teams group that looks completely different than the one the Rams fielded last season. We don’t yet know who will be kicking or punting for the Rams, or even returning kicks when the season begins, but it’s obvious Blackburn and McVay didn’t love the group Los Angeles already had in place.

The only one who may have been hard to retain was Gay, considering he signed the largest free-agent deal ever for a kicker, earning $5.5 million per year from the Colts. That might’ve been tough for the Rams to match.

There are free agents available for Los Angeles to sign, including Robbie Gould, Mason Crosby and Randy Bullock, who Blackburn coached with the Titans last season. Andy Lee and Brett Kern are both available at punter, too. But the Rams haven’t been linked to any specialists in free agency yet.

The draft could be their best option, along with camp cuts later this summer. Expect them to draft a kicker if they don’t sign one soon, similar to the way they did in 2020 when they selected Sam Sloman on Day 3. It’s not the best use of assets, but they need a reliable kicker and an improved punter.

In the return game, the Rams don’t have an experienced return specialist on the roster. They absolutely should not put Cooper Kupp back there to return punts, and Tutu Atwell didn’t exactly look comfortable handling that as a rookie.

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Broncos are signing Rams free-agent punter Riley Dixon

In addition to a new kicker and long snapper, the Rams will now be in search of a punter, too

The Los Angeles Rams are starting over with their group of specialists. After already losing Matt Gay to the Colts and Matthew Orzech to the Packers, Riley Dixon is now on his way out of L.A.

According to Adam Schefter of ESPN, the Broncos are signing Dixon, reuniting with the punter who spent the 2016 and 2017 seasons in Denver.

Dixon’s tenure with the Rams only lasted one season and it was just an OK one. He punted it 71 times for an average of 48.4 yards, netting 41.7 yards per punt. He only downed 26.8% of his punts inside the 20, which was the lowest rate of his career.

With Chase Blackburn stepping in as the Rams’ new special teams coordinator, it’s understandable that he’d want to bring in some fresh faces. However, Gay and Orzech were studs on special teams and the Rams could have retained them as free agents.

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Broncos signing punter Riley Dixon

After adding Riley Dixon, the Broncos now have a new special teams coordinator, a new punter, a new returner and a change at long snapper.

The Denver Broncos are signing punter Riley Dixon, according to a report from ESPN’s Adam Schefter.

Dixon, 29, entered the NFL as a seventh-round pick out of Syracuse with the Broncos in 2016. After spending the first two years of his career in Denver, Dixon was traded to the New York Giants in 2018.

Dixon spent four seasons in New York before joining the Los Angeles Rams on a one-year deal in 2022. He averaged 48.4 yards per punt with a long of 67 yards with the Rams last season.

The Broncos are also bringing back punter Corliss Waitman, who received a one-year ERFA tender, but Dixon will be the clear favorite to win Denver’s punting competition this summer.

Story update: Waitman’s ERFA tender was rescinded, making him a free agent. 

Signing Dixon is the latest move the Broncos have made this offseason to improve their special teams. With a new special teams coordinator, a change at long snapper, a new punter and a new returner, Denver should be able to take a big step forward on special teams in 2023.

We are tracking all of the team’s free agency moves on Broncos Wire.

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Rams finish 29th in 2022 special teams rankings

The Rams didn’t have the best year on special teams, despite Matt Gay’s near-perfect season

The Rams had one of the best kickers in football this season, but even Matt Gay couldn’t lift the overall play of the special teams unit. It was a rough year for the Rams’ special teamers outside of Gay, and as a result, they once again ranked near the bottom of the league in that phase of the game.

As he does every year, Rick Gosselin ranked every team’s special teams unit and in 2022, the Rams came in at No. 29. These rankings are based on 22 different categories, ranging from kickoff returns to punt coverage to field goals and extra points. Field position is also factored in, and the Rams really struggled in that area.

They had the fifth-worst average starting position, while their opponents had the fourth-best in the league. The Rams didn’t have any big returns on special teams, either; Brandon Powell’s longest punt return was just 22 yards and this longest kickoff runback was 34 yards.

Riley Dixon ranked 13th among all punters with a net average of 42 yards, but he downed just 19 of his punts inside the 20-yard line. His longest punt was 67 yards.

Gay was really the only consistent and reliable special teams player. He ranked fourth with a field goal conversion rate of 93.3%, going a perfect 21-for-21 inside 50 yards. He’s a pending free agent, just like Dixon and Powell, but Gay should be a high priority for the Rams.

Last year, the Rams ranked 16th in Gosselin’s poll, but in 2020, they were 30th in the NFL.

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Look: Riley Dixon thanks Baker Mayfield for not making him work on Christmas

It was the first zero-punt game of Riley Dixon’s career, and he had Baker Mayfield to thank for letting him take Christmas Day off

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Riley Dixon has been busy this season for the Rams, punting 62 times in the team’s first 14 games. The offense has been awful all year, but on Sunday, the Rams somehow put up 51 points against the Broncos.

After the game, Dixon had to thank Baker Mayfield for giving him the first no-punt game of his career. Dixon still had to suit up and stand on the sideline all game long, but at least he didn’t have to work much on Christmas Day.

His only obligation was holding for Matt Gay nine times as he drilled three field goals and six PATs. Check out Dixon’s funny tweet below.

6 takeaways from Rams’ 26-10 loss to Chiefs

The Rams fell to the Chiefs 26-10 in Week 12 and here are out six immediate takeaways from the loss.

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The Los Angeles Rams suffered another loss on Sunday to the Kansas City Chiefs, giving them a 3-8 record on the season. The Rams have now lost five games in a row as injuries and other issues have taken a toll on the defending Super Bowl champions.

With Matthew Stafford sidelined due to being in the league’s concussion protocol, it was Bryce Perkins who made his first career start in the NFL in Week 12. The absence of Stafford led Los Angeles to lose 26-10 as they were unable to generate much offense.

Following another loss for the Rams, here are six takeaways from Sunday’s contest versus the Chiefs.

Giants roster turnover: 13 new Week 1 starters compared to 2021

When the New York Giants take on the Tennessee Titans in Week 1, 13 different players will start compared to Week 1 of last season.

The New York Giants saw significant change this offseason as yet another rebuild was ushered in under the leadership of first-time general manager Joe Schoen.

In addition to a front office and scouting overhaul, the Giants also saw significant roster turnover. Nearly 50 percent of the roster was altered in some way, shape or form and that will be represented in Week 1 of the 2022 regular season.

When the Giants take on the Tennessee Titans, 13 Week 1 starters from last year’s team will have been replaced — some outright and some due to injury.

Here’s a quick look at those 13 changes from 2021 to 2022.

Riley Dixon wins punter battle with Rams waiving Cameron Dicker

The Rams appear to have settled on a replacement for Johnny Hekker, turning to veteran Riley Dixon

Johnny Hekker was the Rams’ punter for the last 10 years, but they decided to make a change this offseason. They cut the four-time All-Pro in what was a money-saving move, opening the door for a competition at punter this summer.

After signing Riley Dixon as a free agent and adding Cameron Dicker after the draft, the Rams allowed both players to compete for the job. And while it truly was a competition, it didn’t last very long into the preseason. Dicker was the only one who kicked in the preseason opener against the Chargers, a sign that Dixon may have already secured the spot as Hekker’s replacement.

We got confirmation of that on Tuesday when the Rams made their first round of cuts, and Dicker was among the five players waived. So that leaves Dixon as the only punter left on the roster, making him the team’s choice for the 2022 season.

Dixon makes sense as the Rams’ pick, too. He was with Joe DeCamillis in Denver in 2016, and he comes with experience as a six-year veteran. That proves valuable, and DeCamillis even said Dixon has a “similar skill set to what we had before.”

It’s hard to replace a punter who was once the best in the game, but Dixon should do a solid job with the Rams this season. And if he struggles, it was only a one-year contract worth $1 million.

6 training camp battles to watch for the Rams

The Rams will begin training camp soon and there are plenty of position battles to keep an eye on.

Training camps are right around the corner in the NFL, which means we’ll soon have football on our television screens again. It seems like forever ago that the Los Angeles Rams defeated the Cincinnati Bengals in the Super Bowl, but the reigning champions have their sights set on defending their title in 2022.

Throughout the offseason, the Rams made a flurry of moves, most notably adding Allen Robinson and Bobby Wagner. While those two guys aren’t at risk of having limited playing time in the upcoming season, there will be a handful of position battles taking place at training camp for Los Angeles.

With mere days until training camp begins for the Rams, let’s take a look at six training camp battles that fans should keep close tabs on.

Kayvon Thibodeaux lures No. 5 away from Giants’ Graham Gano

It took time, money effort and maybe even a few tears, but Kayvon Thibodeaux has secured No. 5 from New York Giants kicker Graham Gano.

Kayvon Thibodeaux really wanted to wear No. 5 with the New York Giants and the team’s first-round pick in the 2022 NFL draft officially got his wish on Monday.

The Giants announced that Thibodeaux will wear No. 5 this coming season after reaching an undisclosed (for now) agreement with kicker Graham Gano.

Gano had the number for the past two seasons, but it sounds like he and Thibodeaux were able to strike a deal in which the payment goes directly to charity. A win-win for all involved.

Following the jersey exchange, Gano implied on social media that he may be returning to one of his former jersey numbers. That would be No. 9, previously held by punter Riley Dixon.

Dixon was, of course, released earlier this year.

In the end, it all works out as Thibodeaux gets the number he wore at Oregon while Gano cashes in on a jersey exchange that likely helps with some team bonding as well.

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