Philadelphia Eagles

One Eagle Set an NFL Record Sunday That Nobody Noticed

One Eagle set an NFL record Sunday that nobody noticed originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia

Enough about Carson Wentz struggling and the defense sputtering and the Eagles losing again.

Amidst the wreckage, one Eagle actually set an NFL record Sunday.

With his performance in the Eagles' 37-19 loss to the Rams Sunday, Cameron Johnston became the top punter in NFL history.

Here's how:

Entering this season, Johnston ranked third in NFL history with a career punting average of 47.2, trailing only Shane Lechler and Drew Kaser among punters with 100 career punts.

Lechler, a nine-time Pro Bowler, averaged 47.6 yards per punt during his remarkable 18-year career with the Raiders and Texans. Kaser was only in the league from 2016 through 2018 with the Chargers but averaged 47.4 yards per punt.

Rounding out the Top 5 coming into the season were Johnny Hekker, who’s been punting for the Rams since 2012, and Thomas Morstead, who’s been with the Saints since 2009 - Hecker at 47.0 and Morstead at 46.9.

In the season opener in Washington, Johnston punted five times for 268 yards, increasing his career average from 47.2 to 47.4 (actually 47.42) and moving past Kaser (47.38) into second place behind Lechler.

And with his two punts for 121 yards this past Sunday, Johnston increased his career mark to 47.6.

But Johnston’s 47.6 is higher than Lechler’s 47.6.

If you go to hundredths of a yard, Lecher is at 47.56 and Johnston at 47.61.

That’s a difference of about 1.8 inches per punt over the course of their careers, but for now, Johnston has the highest career punting average in NFL history.

Johnston leads the NFL with a 55.7 average so far, which is 7th-highest in NFL history by any punter after two games.

But Johnston’s hold on the NFL all-time punting record is a tenuous one. Since he has so few career attempts - 139 in his two seasons plus two games - Johnston’s average can move dramatically up - as we’ve seen these last two weeks - or down, if he has a bad game.

For example, if Johnston averaged a pedestrian 35 yards on five punts Sunday against the Bengals, his career average would plunge to 46.3 and he’d drop below not only Lechler and Kaser but also Hekker, Michael Dickson, Morstead, Marquette King, Brandon Fields, Tress Way, Andy Lee and Pat McAfee - all the way into 12th place all-time.

If you’re obsessed with punting stats, this stuff is fascinating. And the way this Eagles season is going so far? It might wind up being the only fascinating thing we've got.

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