The New England Patriots have brought in a new punter.
Per ESPN’s Mike Reiss, the Patriots have signed former Pittsburgh Steelers and Denver Broncos punter Corliss Waitman. He’s back with the team after he had a stint with them in 2021.
Punter news!
The Patriots have signed Corliss Waitman, formerly of the Steelers and Broncos. He also had a stint on the Patriots’ practice squad in 2021.
— Mike Reiss (@MikeReiss) March 23, 2023
Patriots fans and media members are a fan of this move, based on their reactions to it on social media.
“Waitman is an upgrade to Jake Bailey and Michael Palardy who were statistically the worst punters in the NFL in 2022. Waitman was 7th in the NFL with punts inside the 20, 2nd in punt yards, and 14th in net avg. I’m sure the Patriots will bring in competition from the draft,” one tweet read.
Waitman is an upgrade to Jake Bailey and Michael Palardy who were statistically the worst punters in the NFL in 2022.
Waitman was 7th in the NFL with punts inside the 20, 2nd in punt yards, and 14th in net avg.
I’m sure the Patriots will bring in competition from the draft. https://t.co/2alabK4DLS
— His Excellency President Mike Anderson 🇺🇸 (@m_anderson2015) March 23, 2023
Prediction: Assuming Waitman is the @Patriots punter in 2023, he will be a fan favorite. International upbringing, quirky success story, classic good looks and excellent interviewer, successful music producer, and the guy’s got a strong leg. Big upgrade from the last few years! https://t.co/5cQwR0gRMi
— Steve Marchand (@marchandsteve) March 23, 2023
Punter hype!!!!!!!! https://t.co/PzKdvXVfB8
— The Rubes (@rubes_tweets) March 23, 2023
Didn’t take long for Corliss Waitman to find a new home. And we know how Bill Belichick likes his lefty punters. https://t.co/Wb6A6x4qAG
— Andrew Mason (@MaseDenver) March 23, 2023
“The Patriots have a new punter. Waitman punted 96 times for Denver last season. Still wouldn’t be surprised if they drafted another,” another tweet read.
The Patriots have a new punter. Waitman punted 96 times for Denver last season.
Still wouldn’t be surprised if they drafted another. https://t.co/wAM7NDoDHW
— Zack Cox (@ZackCoxNESN) March 23, 2023
The lefty spent last year with the Broncos, and led the league with 96 punts https://t.co/0EndSFe4Al
— Alex Barth (@RealAlexBarth) March 23, 2023
Waitman was the punter for all 17 games for the Broncos last season and averaged 46.6 yards per punt and had a long of 59 yards. He also had six touchbacks and had 30 punts downed inside the 20-yard line.