Las Vegas punter remains a field-flipping special teamer
There wasn’t much to hold in high regard when a football team gets shellacked by an inferior squad.
Such is life for the Las Vegas Raiders after the 36-22 thumping they took at the hands of the visiting Carolina Panthers this Sunday. The thorough defeat even prompted head coach Antonio Pierce to emphatically note there was “nothing” positive to take away from the loss that dropped his football team to 1-2 overall.
The rollercoaster of efficient and embarrassing Raiders football has to be wearing on Pierce, his coaching staff, and his players — and Week 3 of the young football season just closed. If there’s been one consistent Raider, it’s punter AJ Cole III.
Showcasing accuracy, power, and touch, Cole punted the ball five times against Carolina for 261 yards (robust 52.2 per boot average) with a long of 58 yards. Three of his kicks landed inside the Panthers’ 20-yard line providing the Raiders much-needed field-flipping prowess. Unfortunately, for much of the game, Las Vegas vaunted defense was getting surgically picked apart by veteran quarterback Andy Dalton as Carolina’s offense found its footing both through the air and on the ground, negating a lot of Cole’s work.
Panthers punt returner Raheem Blackshear also fielded three of Cole’s punts for a total of 33 yards (a long of 16) to erode both trio of kicks and the Raiders coverage unit all at the same time.
Cole’s tag team kicking partner, place kicker Daniel Carlson, had an off day with his lone field goal attempt in last Sunday’s loss.
The try came from 57 yards out after Las Vegas got into field goal range — Carolina’s 39-yard line — and with four seconds left in the first half, Carlson’s might boot sailed wide of the upright, no good. That 0-for-1 outing was all she wrote for the big-legged kicker as the Raiders fell so far behind and the offense was floundering badly, that there was no other field goal attempt.
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Photo by Louis Grasse/Getty Images
Up Next: The Raiders (1-2) host the Cleveland Browns (1-2) for an afternoon clash in Allegiant Stadium. Cole and Carlson have two career games against the Browns — both victories (16-6 in 2020 and 16-14 in 2021). Cole punted five times in those two games for 233 yards (46.6 average per boot) with two of the punts landing inside the Browns’ 20-yard line. Carlson, meanwhile, is 6-for-7 in field goal attempts against Cleveland. His lone miss came in the 2020 matchup.
Where They Stand
On the young season, Cole ranks 10th in the league with his 50.3 yard per punt average. He’s just behind the Seattle Seahawks’ Michael Dickson (50.4) in that regard and it’s the Cincinnati Bengals’ Ryan Rehkow leading the pack with a 59.3 average per boot.
Cole also ranks No. 10 in number of punts overall with 13 and yards with 654, along with total inside the opponent’s 20-yard line with six. In terms of net yards (total punt yards minus any return yardage), Cole is No. 7 overall with 577 yards (the Raiders have yielded 57 punt return yards) and No. 6 in net average at 44.4.
Flip it to Carlson, and he ranks No. 26 in field goal percentage at 71.4 percent (5 of 7). The seven attempts puts him at No. 15 overall in the league as the Pittsburgh Steelers’ Chris Boswell and Green Bay Packers’ Brayden Narveson lead the NFL with 11 attempts, apiece.
Early Returns
Las Vegas’ kickoff and punt return game have been minimal at best. Against the Panthers, the Raiders fielded two kickoffs with DJ Turner take one 26 yards and Ameer Abdullah gaining 27 yards on another. Tre Tucker fielded a punt but didn’t gain a yard.
In terms of kickoff coverage, Xavier Leggette churned out 30 yards on his lone return of Carlson’s boot for Carolina, while Blackshear took one out 25 yards.
Extra Points: Turner continues to be the most active special teamer on the Raiders garnering 26 snaps on special teams last Sunday. Safety Isaiah Pola-Mao was right behind with 25 snap. Linebackers Kana’i Mauga (24 snaps), Amari Gainer (22), Amari Burney (20), Tommy Eichenberg (rookie, 20), and safety Christopher Smith II (21) rounded out the group.
