Tag: Ryan Rehkow

Bengals coach reveals what decided punter battle

The punter battle for the Bengals is very, very over.

The Cincinnati Bengals and special teams coordinator Darrin Simmons neatly wrapped up the punter battle before Week 5 by releasing Brad Robbins after he returned from injury.

It wasn’t a hard move to see coming, not after a fantastic start to the season by rookie Ryan Rehkow.

Speaking with reporters before the upcoming game against the Baltimore Ravens, Simmons detailed the main reason the team went with Rehkow.

“He has on multiple occasions, been able to dig us out of a hole,” Simmons said, according to CLNS Media’s Mike Petraglia. “From a field position standpoint, is a huge, huge, huge factor for us. I think obviously you could see this. Everybody can see it. He came here with leg talent, and that’s something I can’t coach. And the ball just gets small when he hits it sometimes when it goes up in the air. I’ve not seen anybody can hit the ball as high and as far as he can, the combination. I’ve seen guys can get the ball higher. I can see guys can hit the ball far. But to do the combination of is pretty rare.”

Rehkow had a historic Week 1, prompting us to suggest that he ended the punter battle in one go. His surprisingly good season has only continued from there.

So it goes in the NFL — Robbins seemed to have a handle on the starting job before suffering an injury that carried over into the season. While Robbins was automatically designated to return, Rehkow had taken the utmost advantage of the situation to show he’s a core piece of Simmons’ unit that won’t be changing.

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Bengals rookie punter might have ended roster battle with historic Week 1

Do the Bengals finally have their punter of the future?

While Week 1 didn’t go at all how the Cincinnati Bengals wanted it to, their poor offensive performance did allow one newcomer to show off.

Rookie punter Ryan Rehkow set a record in his NFL debut with an average of 64.5 yards per punt in the loss to the New England Patriots, beating the previous record of 63.6 yards that was set in November of last season by Las Vegas Raiders punter A.J. Cole. Rehkow punted four times for 258 yards.

Rehkow signed with the Kansas City Chiefs as an undrafted free agent out of BYU and soon after signed with the Bengals where he would win the starting job. On his very first try in the league when Cincinnati’s second drive came to a stall, he booted the football from where he was standing on his own 5-yard line and bounced it into the opposite end zone, an 80-yard punt that stands as a new franchise record.

Rehkow came into the season still in a battle with second-year punter Brad Robbins, who the Bengals spent a 2023 sixth-round draft pick on, but he injured his hip in training camp and remains on the IR.

With his record-setting Week 1 performance, Rehkow might have ended the battle for the starting punter job when Robbins is able to return.

The Bengals certainly hope he doesn’t need to punt as much as he had to in the first week of the season, but if he continues anywhere near the performance he started his career with, Cincinnati might have found its new punter.

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Chiefs Dave Toub explains the decision to name Matt Araiza the starting punter

Kansas City #Chiefs Dave Toub explains the decision to name Matt Araiza the starting punter | @EdEastonJr

The Kansas City Chiefs moved on from punter Tommy Townsend this offseason as he signed with the Houston Texans. They signed two punters but decided not to have a competition carry into training camp.

Chiefs special teams coordinator Dave Toub spoke with reporters after Saturday’s practice, addressing the early decision to name Matt Araiza the starting punter before training camp.

“Both of those guys did a great job. Ryan Rehkow did a great job, the kid from BYU we had. It was a tough decision,” said Toub. It wasn’t really cut and dry, but in the end, Matt (Araiza) was a little more consistent day to day. Being a lefty punter, a little bit older, I think we made that choice to go with it. I didn’t want to go into this camp with two guys.”

Toub and the coaching staff wanted the punter competition settled before the start of training camp. The goal is to build reps and chemistry with kicker Harrison Butker, as the punter also serves as the primary holder during the season.

“Returners don’t normally see (lefty punters). Now everybody has a jug machine that’s able to turn into a lefty punt, but you just don’t see a lot of lefty punters in the league,” said Toub. “They don’t catch them a lot, mostly righties.”

Araiza has plenty of potential as a former All-American in college and the Ray Guy Award winner as the nation’s best collegiate punter in 2021. He was initially drafted by the Buffalo Bills in 2022.

Chiefs release P Ryan Rehkow after mandatory minicamp

Kansas City #Chiefs release P Ryan Rehkow after mandatory minicamp | @EdEastonJr

With mandatory minicamp in the rearview, the Kansas City Chiefs have decided to part ways with one of their undrafted free agents. Former BYU punter Ryan Rehkow was announced as the lone release on Thursday via the team’s transactions tracker.

The release of Rehkow was accompanied by the signing of defensive tackle Alex Gubner with training camp quickly approaching next month. Gubner, another undrafted free agent from this year’s class, earned Big Sky Defensive MVP honors last season, tallying 45 tackles, 9.5 tackles for loss, and three sacks at Montana. He impressed during tryouts at minicamp, prompting the front office to add him to the 90-man roster.

Rehkow was a former Big 12 Punter of the Year known for having a big leg throughout his college career. He recorded a 42 percent inside-20 rate in his four seasons at BYU. In his last season, he had 68 punts, nine of which went as far as 60 yards.

The move opens the door for veteran Matt Araiza, the only punter on the roster. An All-American in college and winner of the Ray Guy Award as the nation’s best collegiate punter in 2021, he was drafted by the Buffalo Bills in 2022.

Former BYU punter Ryan Rehkow to sign with Chiefs

UDFA rumors: Former BYU punter Ryan Rehkow is expected to sign with the Kansas City #Chiefs.

The positions usually ignored in the NFL draft are kicker, punter and long snapper. The high-quality specialists available following the draft are at a premium as every team looks for diamonds in the rough.

Announced late Saturday night via the BYU Football X account, the Kansas City Chiefs are signing punter Ryan Rehkow. Rehkow is a former Big 12 Punter of the Year known for having a big leg throughout college. He recorded a 42 percent inside-20 rate in his four seasons at BYU. In 2023, he had 68 punts, nine of which went as far as 60 yards.

The Chiefs struck gold by signing undrafted free agent Tommy Townsend a few seasons ago as he eventually became a first-team All-Pro. Townsend signed with the Houston Texans at the start of the league year, opening the door for a possible competition with Kansas City’s recently signed punter Matt Araiza.

For more Chiefs UDFA signings, follow our tracker.