The Panthers have now had 3 kickers on their roster, and are moving through specialists at an alarming rate. Why did they sign another? Let's discuss that;
After struggling to find stability in their Kicker/Punter positions for 4 weeks, the Michigan Panthers decided to let Michael Carrizosa go after Week 4. They then went on to sign Cole Murphey, out of Syracuse, to replace him as the team's primary Kicker and Punter. The only problem?
Cole Murphey is not a punter.
So the Panthers cut Carrizosa, who was ranked #4 in my (un)Official Week 4 USFL Punter Power Rankings, only to sign a guy who hasn't punted since high school? O.K.
As you may have expected, Cole Murphey did not have a good game punting the ball during the Michigan Panthers 27-20 Loss to the Tampa Bay Bandits. Murphey punted a total of 6 times, for 233 yards (a low 38 yards per punt). His NET average yards per punt didn't look great either and at 30 NET yards per punt, it's easy to see why. This was statistically speaking, the second-worst stat-line a punter has ever put up in the USFL. I'll give the guy credit though, he isn't a great punter, but he isn't the reason the team lost the game.
So do the Michigan Panthers reach out to Carrizosa and see if he'll come back only handling Punting responsibilities?
No, instead they sign Kyle Kramer, a Punter out of the University of Miami.
Kramer appeared in 45 games for the Redhawks, punting 234 times for a total of 9826 yards. That is good for an average of 42 yards per punt, which seems to be Kramer's ceiling in terms of length. He hit a career-long of 64, but has only ever kicked the ball 50+ yards 43 times. Kramer does, however, seem to be able to pin the opponent deep when needed, punting the ball inside the 20 yard line 43% of the time.
During his last year at Miami, he was First Team All-MAC and he will now get a chance to prove himself in the USFL on a team that sorely needs the help. Will this be what the Michigan Panthers Special Teams needs to become the best unit in the USFL? I don't know, but I am looking forward to finding out!
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