Throughout the summer leading up to the regular season, we will go through the entire 2024 Cincinnati Bengals roster. Every single day until the season opener against the New England Patriots , we will break down a player on the roster including his background, contract status, and path towards making the team.
Today, we get to know about Cincinnati's newest punter, Austin McNamara. His impressive collegiate career has led him to a true roster showdown in Cincinnati, and if any college free agent signing has a good chance of actually making the Bengals' 53-man roster, it's him. Let's discover why.
Austin McNamara
- Age: 23
- Year: 1st
- Position: Punter
- College: Texas Tech
- Previous Teams: None
- Jersey Number: 7
McNamara signed with the Bengals as an undrafted free agent following the 2024 NFL Draft. He spent his entire five-year college career at Texas Tech, and leaves the Red Raiders as the greatest punter in program history. His career average of 45.91 yards per punt is not only the highest in Texas Tech history, it's the highest in the history of the Big 12 Conference . His 48.2 average from 2021 is also the school and conference single-season record.
Despite his accomplishments over five years and 247 punts, one of which went 87 yards, McNamara went undrafted back in April as only one punter heard his name called. Fortunately, McNamara and Bengals special teams coordinator Darrin Simmons were already locked in long before the draft, so there wasn't much doubt about where he wanted to sign.
"We had that personal connection over the last month and a half before the draft and that definitely weighed in my decision," McNamara told Bengals.com's Geoff Hobson back in May . "We talked during the back end of the draft."
Simmons got his guy without needing to use a pick. Now the real work begins.
Contract details
McNamara signed a three-year college free agent deal with the Bengals in May that will pay him the minimum salary for the 2024 season.
His salary will cost $795,000 for the entire season if he's kept on the team for the entire regular season, but with a $15,000 signing bonus prorated throughout the deal, his cap hit as of now is $800,000 for the year.
Roster chances
Another offseason, and another punter battle in Cincinnati. Gone is the long and peaceful reign of Kevin Huber. Year-to-year stability at the position hasn't existed since Huber was eventually replaced by Drue Chrisman during the 2022 season. Chrisman took over for a struggling Huber at the end of his career, and last year's sixth-round pick Brad Robbins beat out Chrisman prior to the 2023 season.
Now, Robbins has to hold off McNamara to keep the position he won less than a year ago.
In terms of roster battles, this one's as simple as it gets. Robbins and McNamara will get equal reps to see which one's the better option for this season. Directional punting and holding for placekicks matter just as much as switching the field with booming punts. The more technically sound player will ultimately win Simmons' trust. We'll see whom that is in time.
Chances of making the roster: 50%
Previous player breakdowns
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