Rick Gosselin’s 2019 NFL Special Teams Rankings
First crown for New Orleans special teams coach Darren Rizzi
(Published February 2020)
The Miami Dolphins changed head coaches in the last decade but not their special-teams coordinator. They had a good one so they kept him.
Darren Rizzi stayed on in Miami through the Tony Sparano, Joe Philbin and Adam Gase regimes. Offense or defense may have been a problem over the years for the Dolphins but not the kicking game. Under Rizzi, the Dolphins finished in the Top 10 in special teams in five of his nine seasons. But when the Dolphins fired Gase after the 2018 season, Rizzi decided it was time to move on.
The Dolphins finished fourth in the NFL in special teams in Rizzi’s final season in 2018. His charges were even better in his first season with the New Orleans Saints.
The Saints finished first in the NFL special-teams rankings compiled annually by Rick Gosselin for the last 41 years. The league’s 32 teams are ranked in 22 kicking-game categories and assigned points according to their standing – one for best, 32 for worst. The Saints compiled 256 points to finish 23 ½ points better than the runnerup Cincinnati Bengals.
The AFC East champion New England Patriots finished third and the AFC West champion Kansas City Chiefs sixth.
The Saints finished first in four of the 22 categories, in the Top 5 in two others and the Top 10 in 10 more. The strength of the New Orleans special teams was kicker Will Lutz and punter Thomas Morstead. The Saints finished in the Top 10 in punting, net punting, inside-the-20 punts, plus field goals, field-goal percentage and extra point percentage.
New Orleans also finished in the Top 10 in both kickoff and punt returns thanks to undrafted rookie free agent Deonte Harris. He averaged 26.8 yards on kickoff returns and 9.4 yards on punt returns with one touchdown on his way to the Pro Bowl. The Saints also led the NFL with four blocked kicks, all on punts – one pure block and three deflections.
Bill Belichick became head coach of the Patriots in 2000 and his special teams have finished in the Top 10 in 14 of the 20 seasons since then. The Patriots have finished in the Top 5 in eight of those seasons, including two of the last three years.
Andy Reid became head coach of the Kansas City Chiefs in 2013 and his team has finished in the Top 10 in special teams every season since then, seven years now and counting. That’s the longest such streak in the NFL.
Belichick carried four elite special teamers on his roster this season – Matthew Slater, Nate Ebner, Brandon Bolden and Justin Bethel – and the Patriots benefitted from that roster commitment. Slater, Erber and Bolden all blocked kicks, Bethel recovered two fumbles and Slater one and Slater also scored a touchdown on a blocked punt.
| Rank | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | New Orleans | 256 |
| 2 | Cincinnati | 279.5 |
| 3 | New England | 284 |
| 4 | Washington | 301.5 |
| 5 | Jacksonville | 302 |
| 6 | Kansas City | 309.5 |
| 7 | NY Giants | 314 |
| 8 | NY Jets | 324 |
| 9 | Pittsburgh | 324.5 |
| 10 | Detroit | 329 |
| 11 | Houston | 330.5 |
| 12 | Buffalo | 341 |
| 13 | Arizona | 351.5 |
| 13 | Cleveland | 351.5 |
| 15 | Philadelphia | 356.5 |
| 16 | Seattle | 359 |
| 17 | Minnesota | 361.5 |
| 18 | Tennessee | 363.5 |
| 19 | San Francisco | 365 |
| 20 | LA Rams | 372.5 |
| 21 | Denver | 376 |
| 22 | LA Chargers | 382.5 |
| 23 | Chicago | 396.5 |
| 24 | Miami | 402.5 |
| 25 | Oakland | 403 |
| 26 | Green Bay | 412.5 |
| 27 | Baltimore | 413.5 |
| 28 | Carolina | 417 |
| 29 | Indianapolis | 419 |
| 30 | Atlanta | 451 |
| 31 | Dallas | 474.5 |
| 32 | Tampa Bay | 491.5 |
Here’s a breakdown of the 22 categories:
KICKOFF RETURNS
Best: Denver 28.1 yards
Worst: Dallas 14.9 yards
PUNT RETURNS
Best: Indianapolis 17.4 yards
Worst: Green Bay 4.5 yards
KICKOFF COVERAGE
Best: Houston 18.3 yards
Worst: LA Rams 28.5 yards
PUNT COVERAGE
Best: Houston 3.3 yards
Worst: Carolina 13.3 yards
KICKOFF STARTING POINT
Best: Buffalo 27.6-yard line
Worst: LA Chargers 23.4-yard line
OPPONENT STARTING POINT
Best: Houston 22.9-yard line
Worst: Miami 27.9-yard line
PUNTING
Best: Washington 49.2 yards
Worst: Dallas 41.2 yards
NET PUNTING
Best: Jacksonville 44.4 yards
Worst: Dallas 37.2 yards
INSIDE-THE-20 PUNTS
Best: Tennessee 35
Worst: LA Chargers 15
OPPONENT PUNTING
Best: New Orleans 42.4 yards
Worst: Tampa Bay 47.4 yards
OPPONENT NET PUNTING
Best: New Orleans 36.8 yards
Worst: Tampa Bay 44.3 yards
FIELD GOALS
Best: Kansas City 33
Worst: Tennessee 8
FIELD GOAL PERCENTAGE
Best: Jacksonville 96.7 percent
Worst: Tennessee 44.4 percent
OPPONENT FIELD GOAL PERCENTAGE
Best: Buffalo 63.6 percent
Worst: Atlanta 96.7
EXTRA POINT PERCENTAGE
Best: Dallas 100 percent
Worst: Indianapolis 83.78 percent
POINTS SCORED
Best: Indianapolis 14
Worst: 14 teams tied with 0
POINTS ALLOWED
Best: 12 teams tied with 0 points
Worst: Carolina 18 points
BLOCKED KICKS
Best: New England, New Orleans, Tennessee 4 apiece
Worst: 10 teams tied with 0
OPPONENT BLOCKED KICKS
Best: Eight teams tied with 0
Worst: Indianapolis 4
TAKEAWAYS
Best: Atlanta 5
Worst: 10 teams tied with 0
GIVEAWAYS
Best: 9 teams tied with 0
Worst: Carolina, Philadelphia 3 apiece
PENALTIES
Best: Buffalo 10 for 88 yards
Worst: Jacksonville 26 for 223 yards
