2018 NFL Average Kickoff Return Allowed Leaders

Return yards divided by returns. It shows how well his kicks and coverage contain returners.

Lower is better. Only specialists with enough returns are ranked. In 2018, Josh Lambo (17.9) topped NFL kickoff specialists in average kickoff return allowed, ahead of Ka'imi Fairbairn (20.1) and Matt McCrane (20.1). 36 kickoff specialists qualify (minimum 10 returns). The median qualified kickoff specialist had 22.7.

NFL rule from 2016 to 2023: a kickoff touchback started the receiving team at its 25 (from 2023 a fair catch inside the 25 did too), so a deep kick into the end zone was the safe, standard result. Kickoff Points Added accounts for the rule, so it is the fair way to compare kickoff specialists across leagues and seasons.

Final 2018 regular-season numbers, updated October 23, 2026.

Rk	Player	Team	Avg ret	Kickoffs	Avg dist	TB%	Returns	Points
1	Josh Lambo	Jacksonville Jaguars	17.9	52	62.6	69%	16	+2.9
2	Ka'imi Fairbairn	Houston Texans	20.1	92	63.6	63%	34	+4.7
3	Matt McCrane	Las Vegas Raiders	20.1	20	61.9	25%	15	+3.0
4	Aldrick Rosas	New York Giants	20.4	81	62.8	63%	28	+1.2
5	Brandon McManus	Denver Broncos	20.6	70	63.3	60%	28	+2.9
6	Chris Boswell	Pittsburgh Steelers	20.6	82	62.2	62%	31	+7.6
7	Phil Dawson	Arizona Cardinals	21.0	31	63.6	45%	17	+2.5
8	Mike Badgley	Los Angeles Chargers	21.4	54	61.7	17%	45	+5.5
9	Chandler Catanzaro	Tampa Bay Buccaneers	21.5	65	63.4	80%	13	−1.9
10	Cairo Santos	Tampa Bay Buccaneers	21.5	48	61.6	40%	29	−2.5
11	Rigoberto Sanchez	Indianapolis Colts	21.8	86	63.0	69%	27	−1.0
12	Randy Bullock	Cincinnati Bengals	22.0	78	63.6	58%	32	+1.0
13	Stephen Hauschka	Buffalo Bills	22.1	63	62.0	48%	33	+2.3
14	Jake Elliott	Philadelphia Eagles	22.5	81	64.1	70%	24	−0.4
15	Caleb Sturgis	Los Angeles Chargers	22.5	34	64.6	53%	16	+2.4
16	Justin Tucker	Baltimore Ravens	22.6	92	62.5	63%	33	−0.8
17	Harrison Butker	Kansas City Chiefs	22.7	109	64.1	66%	35	+1.8
18	Dustin Hopkins	Washington Commanders	22.7	69	64.2	81%	13	−1.0
19	Matt Bosher	Atlanta Falcons	22.7	87	63.8	59%	36	−1.1
20	Greg Joseph	Cleveland Browns	22.9	68	63.7	69%	20	+0.4
21	Graham Gano	Carolina Panthers	22.9	61	64.4	77%	14	−1.6
22	Wil Lutz	New Orleans Saints	23.3	101	64.4	63%	37	+0.2
23	Sam Martin	Detroit Lions	23.4	68	64.3	50%	34	+4.6
24	Zane Gonzalez	Arizona Cardinals	23.5	28	64.4	61%	11	+0.2
25	Greg Zuerlein	Los Angeles Rams	23.7	75	64.6	76%	18	+3.8
26	Dan Bailey	Minnesota Vikings	23.8	65	63.0	54%	30	+0.1
27	Stephen Gostkowski	New England Patriots	24.0	95	60.9	55%	43	−11.9
28	Jason Myers	New York Jets	24.1	82	64.1	73%	22	+2.5
29	Cody Parkey	Chicago Bears	24.9	88	63.8	74%	22	−1.3
30	Daniel Carlson	Las Vegas Raiders	25.3	53	62.8	55%	23	−3.2
31	Mason Crosby	Green Bay Packers	26.0	80	64.2	51%	39	−3.0
32	Bradley Pinion	San Francisco 49ers	26.0	77	64.5	68%	25	−3.4
33	Jason Sanders	Miami Dolphins	26.1	69	63.5	80%	13	−5.2
34	Brett Maher	Dallas Cowboys	26.5	77	64.7	68%	25	−4.9
35	Sebastian Janikowski	Seattle Seahawks	27.5	72	64.2	58%	30	−0.4
36	Ryan Succop	Tennessee Titans	28.7	70	63.8	66%	24	−7.1

All 2018 NFL kickoff specialist rankings

Average Kickoff Return Allowed in other seasons: 2026 2025 2024 2023 2022 2021 2020 2019 2017 2016

More 2018 NFL kickoff specialist leaderboards

Other 2018 NFL rankings

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