Punters Are People Too: Falcons' Bradley Pinion Off to Strong Start

The Atlanta Falcons head coach made his stance clear on the team's free agent pickup at punter.

Punters are people too.

At least, Atlanta Falcons head coach Arthur Smith firmly seems to believe this.

In a recent conversation with the media, Smith made his thoughts on the Falcons' recent veteran free agent pickup, punter Bradley Pinion, clear.

Falcons HC Arthur Smith said they have big expectations for P Bradley Pinion, who was signed in June, and made it sound like they expect him to be the guy.

But Seth Vernon is going to get opportunities.

— Michael Rothstein (@mikerothstein) August 1, 2022

Pinion has been punting throughout camp alongside 2022 undrafted free agent Seth Vernon -- however, it is expected that Pinion will ultimately become the starting punter this upcoming 2022 NFL season.

Entering his eighth season in the NFL, Pinion was drafted by the San Fransisco 49ers in the fifth round of the 2015 NFL Draft. The Clemson standout spent four seasons in the Bay Area before signing with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 2019, winning a Super Bowl with the team in 2020.

While 2020 was his best year statistically, as he averaged 45.2 yards per punt, 2021 was a down year. Pinion could only manage 42.5 yards per punt -- this was actually dead last of any punter in the NFL.

However, Pinion is poised for a comeback season. Through camp, he has been posting hang times of nearly five seconds -- on Day 5 of camp, for example, he was recorded as posting times of 4.76 and 4.87 seconds.

Pinion also offers the ability to kick off. Given that recent NFL special teams have begun to use punters for kickoffs and reserving place kickers exclusively for field goals or PATs, this weapon in Pinion's arsenal makes him especially desirable for a team looking to plug a gaping hole at punter.