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Diminishing returns

No punt return touchdowns in first 12 weeks of the season

Is there going to be a punt return touchdown this year? We’ve made it to December, and it hasn’t happened yet. Normally, there would be a half dozen by this time. This year, there have been no long-range returns.

The stats since 1990 appear below. In each of those seasons, there’s been at least 7 touchdowns on punt returns. This year, nothing.

In each of the seasons since 1990, there’s been at least one punt return touchdown from 85-plus yards. This year, nobody has a 50-yard return. Only four have a 40-yard return: Kalif Raymond, Devin Duvernay (pictured), Dede Westbrook and Jaelon Darden.

Note that despite the lack of any touchdowns, punt returners are averaging 8.6 yards per return this year. That’s oddly more than in nine of those previous seasons, including five of the last six. You wouldn’t think that was possible, but the numbers show otherwise.

I’m not sure what’s fueling this. It might be an odd statistical variance – a combination of luck, efficiency on returns declining and the number of total returns declining. I would think we’ll get a couple of punt return touchdowns before the 2021 season is complete. But perhaps gone are the days of the truly feared punt returner.

PUNT RETURNS SINCE 1990
YearNoFCYardsAvgLgTD
19909963488,3978.4098t8
19919933758,6798.7085t9
19929743988,9099.1095t17
19931,0054059,2119.1791t 14
19941,0353729,3679.05103t16
19951,0073979,4059.3489t9
19961,10145611,08710.0792t12
19971,18847311,5349.7194t15
19981,14145111,41710.0195t16
19991,19750311,2289.3894t15
20001,11652811,1369.9894t15
20011,11544111,0309.8995t12
20021,12345310,6889.5295t22
20031,17350111,2939.6393t18
20041,18649210,1878.5993t10
20051,2114959,7998.0985t8
20061,21647110,6238.7490t15
20071,12242110,2109.1094t17
20081,09144210,0929.2593t16
20091,18252210,0228.4885t10
20101,14953111,0269.6097t13
20111,17458211,6339.9199t20
20121,13358111,0359.7498t18
20131,09463610,3019.4298t13
20141,0366459,2118.8990t13
20151,1385919,6548.4889t13
20161,0126478,6818.5895t10
20171,0696268,7418.1888t 10
20189086017,6908.4799t 7
20198766056,6277.5785t 7
20207755616,8508.8491t 8
20215783644,9818.62480

—Ian Allan

Fantasy Index