5 free agent punters the Vikings should consider signing in 2019

(Photo by Adam Bettcher/Getty Images) Matt Wile
(Photo by Adam Bettcher/Getty Images) Matt Wile /
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SEATTLE, WA - DECEMBER 02: Bradley Pinion #5 of the San Francisco 49ers punts the ball in the second quarter against the Seattle Seahawks at CenturyLink Field on December 2, 2018 in Seattle, Washington. (Photo by Otto Greule Jr/Getty Images)
SEATTLE, WA – DECEMBER 02: Bradley Pinion #5 of the San Francisco 49ers punts the ball in the second quarter against the Seattle Seahawks at CenturyLink Field on December 2, 2018 in Seattle, Washington. (Photo by Otto Greule Jr/Getty Images) /

1. Bradley Pinion

A fifth-round draft selection of the San Francisco 49ers in 2015, Bradley Pinion has spent all four of his NFL seasons in the bay area where he played in all 16 games each and every year in the league.

Pinion’s yards per punt average are nothing to write home about. Last year, his 43.7 average has him 29th in the league while his net punt average of 39.1 puts him 24th. That is the downside of the 24-year old punter.

On the upside, he’s only had one punt blocked in four years. In addition, he put 33.53 percent of his punts inside the 20-yard line and only had a touchback on 4.19 percent of his attempts, making him a safe punter, but not a game-changing one.

Pinion acts as a holder, which is a place where the Vikings were inconsistent in 2018 because it was Matt Wile’s first year handling the duty. While this wouldn’t be a sexy pickup, it would be cheap and fill the team’s needs.