With the opening pick of the sixth round, the Buffalo Bills drafted punter Matt Araiza, who has the nickname ‘Punt God.’ The former San Diego State University punter was one of the best in college last year and had an average of over 50 yards per punt and a season-long punt of 86 yards.
Grade for the Buffalo Bills selecting Matt Araiza: A+
At this point of the NFL Draft, teams are typically looking for depth and the players they are drafting are situational players who hopefully could develop into starters in a few seasons.
However, the Buffalo Bills were able to use this pick on a player who they won’t need to wait to contribute as he should be the team’s starting punter as a rookie. The team had Matt Haack as their punter last year but he struggled and this now sets up a training camp battle at the position similar to what they did at placekicker a few seasons ago with the selection of Tyler Bass to compete with veteran Stephen Hauschka.
Thankfully with the offense the Buffalo Bills have, the punter isn’t overly important. Last year, the Bills had the third-fewest punts which is a great stat but when they did punt, they struggled. In fact, they had the second-lowest average yards per punt at only 42.9 yards.
This should not be an issue if Matt Araiza wins the starting job as a rookie. He has a very strong leg and is someone that may not be impacted as much by the winds and the bad weather in Western New York.
In the end, the Buffalo Bills didn’t have many glaring weaknesses on the roster, and adding arguably the best punter at this point of the NFL Draft is a win for this team.