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Buccaneers Still Battling Punter Woes as 2024 NFL Season Winds Down

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers have struggled to get a consistent punting game going in 2024.

River Wells

ARLINGTON, TEXAS - DECEMBER 22: Chase McLaughlin #4 and Jack Browning #5 of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers react after McLaughlin kicked a field goal during the third quarter against the Dallas Cowboys at AT&T Stadium on December 22, 2024 in Arlington, Texas.
ARLINGTON, TEXAS - DECEMBER 22: Chase McLaughlin #4 and Jack Browning #5 of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers react after McLaughlin kicked a field goal during the third quarter against the Dallas Cowboys at AT&T Stadium on December 22, 2024 in Arlington, Texas. / (Photo by Ron Jenkins/Getty Images)
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The Tampa Bay Buccaneers have had their issues this season. One of them has been on special teams, and at the moment, they still could be looking for an answer.

The Buccaneers have gone through three different punters so far this season. They started the season with punter Jake Camarda, who had one of the best punting seasons in Tampa Bay's franchise history last year, but a shaky performance from him at the beginning of the year led to his release after the team's first game against the New Orleans Saints. The team then moved on to punter Trenton Gill, but a disastrous game against the Carolina Panthers saw him replaced for punter Jack Browning, a rookie on Tampa Bay's practice squad.

But the three games Browning has played in — only two of which he punted in — were not enough. As FOX Sports' Greg Auman pointed out, all three punters Tampa Bay has used are among the league's worst, and Browning's net yards are the worst of the bunch so far at 33.9 yards per punt.

The question now is what the Buccaneers do next.

Browning has been a practice squad elevation for the Buccaneers every week, leaving a spot on the 53-man roster free for another player. You only get three of those elevations, however, and Browning's elevations are now up — the Bucs will either have to sign him to the 53-man roster or let him go entirely and look for another punter. That may be difficult, however, as we're two games away from the end of the season and there will be very, very few veteran options.

“We’ll see. He’s been kind of up and down," Bowles said Monday when asked about Browning."[He] has got to have more consistency.”

The answer will become clearer as the Buccaneers get into their gameweek rhythm against the Carolina Panthers in Week 17. But one thing's for sure — special teams have simply not been special enough.

Stick with BucsGameday for more coverage of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers throughout the 2024 season.

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River Wells
RIVER WELLS

River Wells is a sports journalist from St. Petersburg, Florida, who has covered the Tampa Bay Buccaneers since 2023. He graduated with a journalism degree from the University of Florida in 2021. You can follow him on Twitter @riverhwells.

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