Earlier this offseason, the New England Patriots signed punter Ryan Allen to a three-year extension. Allen will be entering his third season with the team and he seems to have improved.
Punters are particularly hard to grade. There's placement, random bounces, hangtime, and returns. How much credit can go to the punter? How much can go to the randomness involved?
Football Perspective's Chase Stuart has tried to quantify a punter's value by looking at expected punt distance.
"On average, when a team punts at the 39, the opposing team takes over at the "78.