NFL special-teams coaches will tell you the most overrated statistic in football is gross punting average – the distance of the kick. That's how the NFL crowns its annual punting champion – who can kick it the farthest. Those coaches will tell you the money stat is net punting. That's the distance of the kick minus the return yardage. Gross punting is an individual stat, net punting a team stat. The longer the punt, the more likely a return. You want the gross and net averages to be as close as possible. Chris Mohr never won an NFL punting title kicking in the wretched wintry conditions at Buffalo in the early 1990s. But he was one of the best team punters of his era. In 1991, he averaged only 38.6 yards per kick – last in the AFC. But his net average was 36.1 – 11th best in the NFL. Only 15 of his 54 punts were returned.
This season, Mat McBriar of the Cowboys leads the NFL with an average of 49.7 yards per kick. But his net average is only 38.9 yards. Of his 37 punts, 24 have been returned and eight more have carried into the end zone for touchbacks. Brian Moorman, the current Buffalo punter, is averaging only 44.9 yards per punt. But his net average leads the NFL at 41.9 yards. Only 19 of his 50 punts have been returned, and only one has carried into the end zone for a touchback. McBriar is having a great season, but Moorman is having the better one.
