The evolution of the Falcons punter position, 2008-2018

The team has only had two starting punters over the past decade-plus: Michael Koenen and Matt Bosher. As you might imagine, this is not a lively table.

Koenen was the team’s punter from 2005-2010, a six year run that was mostly pretty productive. The team went through an ill-fated experiment in 2006 that saw him handling punts, kickoffs, and field goals after he nailed several long ones in preseason, but he went just 2 for 8 on field goals in the regular season and the team re-signed Morten Andersen to handle those duties. Koenen was solid but unspectacular from then on, with two seasons of 40.7 yards per punt averages and four blocked punts from 2008-2010 conspiring to get him pushed out of town heading into 2011.

The team made the decision to expend a draft selection on Matt Bosher, one that was not popular at the time (who drafts a punter, went the hue and cry) and especially not when Bosher struggled mightily to begin his career in Atlanta. Bosher hasn’t been perfect—he’s been blocked eight times in his career—but he’s been a far better punter than Koenen over the past eight seasons and has endeared himself to fans by being one of the league’s most eager and physical tacklers at his position.

Bosher heads into the 2019 with his final year looming unless there’s a new deal coming, and he’s currently tops all-time in yards per punt average and second in bulk yardage and actual punts in this team’s history, plus #1 in soul-stealing tackles by a punter. Hopefully, he’ll make it a decade or more.