getty Matt Bosher #5 of the Atlanta Falcons punts the ball.
The Atlanta Falcons announced last week that they have extended Younghoe Koo and Ryan Allen’s contract for the 2020 season.
Koo and Allen both played in the last eight games of the 2019 season where they showed they were good enough to stay in Atlanta.
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Koo’s 2019 Outstanding Performance
25-year-old Koo was signed in the middle of the season after the Falcons decided to part ways with longtime veteran Matt Bryant who wasn’t performing well. During his first start as a Falcon, Koo made all four field-goal attempts, extra points, and was named NFC Special Team Player that week. He was named NFC Special Teams Player again when he recovered a fumble on a kickoff against the Panthers.
In all eight games, Koo performed his best making 23 out of 23 field goal attempts and 15 for 16 extra-point attempts. Eight of those attempts were made from 40 or more yards back! Koo also recovered four onside kicks which is an impressive talent to have.
Koo came to America as a soccer player before discovering he can punt a football abnormally far and way too well at such a young age.
Allen Proves His Worth
Ryan Allen who also signed in the middle of the season on Nov. 4, finished with a very successful first season as a Falcon. He punted 28 times for 1,172 yards averaging almost 42-yards per attempt. Half of Allen’s 28 punts were downed inside the 20-yard line. He also ended the season with only three touchbacks. Eight punts landed inside the 10-yard line and five of them were placed inside the 5-yard line. Allen is known for having a way of pinpointing opponents deep in their own territory.
Before coming to Atlanta, Allen played six consecutive seasons with the Patriots and won three Super Bowls. He has played in 96 NFL games and currently has a career average of 40.2 yards per punt.
The Falcons signed Sam Irwin-Hill out of Australia, for real this time on February 7th. Irwin-Hill will be who Allen needs to beat out in the offseason.
Bye-Bye Bosher
Since the extension of Allen and a new contract with Irwin-Hill, it looks like Matt Bosher will be moving onto free agency. Bosher was signed in 2011 as a sixth-round pick, punting for the Falcons the past nine seasons. However, he struggled this past season and had a groin injury.
Before his injury, Matt Bosher had an average of 41.9 yards per punt. Over his nine years as a Falcon, Bosher has averaged almost 46 yards per punt. Atlanta has gotten a solid nine years from him, but now its’ looking like he won’t be able to perform as well as the rookies coming to camp. Bosher still seems to have some juice left in him and could be a great fit for another team, but not the Falcons this time around.
It looks like the Falcons are set for kickers and punters but it’ll be a battle to get the starting position for the 2020 season.
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