Kansas City Chiefs second-year punter Tommy Townsend is off to a stellar beginning to his 2021 NFL season.
His Super Bowl LV performance was shaky at best, but he’s learned from that experience and built on it this season in Kansas City. With 26 punts on the year in 11 games played, he’s averaging 48.6 yards per punt.
During the month of November, Townsend had perhaps his best month of professional football yet. For that reason, the NFL named him AFC Special Teams Player of the Month for November. In the past month, Townsend punted 10 times, averaging 54.9 yards per punt and 50.7 net, with six of those punts landing inside the 20 and a long punt of 68 yards.
Townsend also completed a 16-yard pass against the Las Vegas Raiders in Week 10. It was his second career pass completion on a fake punt in as many years. His passing ability has quickly become a strong suit of his game, and teams are going to have to account for it moving forward.
This Special Teams Player of the Month award is special for Townsend and his team. It’s not only the first for Townsend, but he is now the first Chiefs punter to ever earn the award during his career. He also becomes the first punter from his alma mater, the University of Tennessee, to earn this honor.
Townsend joins rookie LB Nick Bolton as the second Chiefs player to take home a monthly award this season. He was named Defensive Rookie of the Month for October.
