2023 NFL Kickoff Specialist Rankings

Every NFL kickoff specialist with enough work in the 2023 regular season (at least 30), ranked by kickoff points added. Each kickoff's expected-points result compared with the league-average kickoff, added up over the season. Onside kicks are left out. It credits the kicker and the coverage team together.

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 2023 regular-season numbers, updated October 23, 2026.

2023 NFL Leaders

Kickoff Touchback Percentage

Joey Slye (Washington Commanders): 93% 64 of 69
Wil Lutz (Denver Broncos): 91% 71 of 78
Brandon Aubrey (Dallas Cowboys): 91% 99 of 109
Greg Zuerlein (New York Jets): 91% 58 of 64
Matt Prater (Arizona Cardinals): 89% 66 of 74

Full Kickoff Touchback Percentage leaderboard

Average Kickoff Return Allowed

Mason Crosby (New York Giants): 5.1 14 returns
Evan McPherson (Cincinnati Bengals): 12.6 17 returns
Tyler Bass (Buffalo Bills): 15.8 41 returns
Blake Grupe (New Orleans Saints): 16.1 14 returns
Dustin Hopkins (Cleveland Browns): 16.6 26 returns

Full Average Kickoff Return Allowed leaderboard

Kickoff Points Added

Nick Folk (Tennessee Titans): +9.1 60 kickoffs
Chad Ryland (New England Patriots): +8.7 60 kickoffs
Jack Fox (Detroit Lions): +7.1 84 kickoffs
Cairo Santos (Chicago Bears): +4.8 74 kickoffs
Tyler Bass (Buffalo Bills): +4.5 94 kickoffs

Full Kickoff Points Added leaderboard

All 2023 NFL Kickoff Specialist Leaderboards

Kickoffs by Points Added

31 kickoff specialists qualify.

Rk	Player	Team	Kickoffs	Avg dist	TB%	Returns	Points
1	Nick Folk	Tennessee Titans	60	64.2	53%	28	+9.1
2	Chad Ryland	New England Patriots	60	63.6	65%	21	+8.7
3	Jack Fox	Detroit Lions	84	64.5	68%	27	+7.1
4	Cairo Santos	Chicago Bears	74	65.0	81%	14	+4.8
5	Tyler Bass	Buffalo Bills	94	63.2	56%	41	+4.5
6	Blake Grupe	New Orleans Saints	90	64.7	84%	14	+4.5
7	Evan McPherson	Cincinnati Bengals	80	64.3	79%	17	+3.3
8	Anders Carlson	Green Bay Packers	85	63.8	44%	47	+2.5
9	Daniel Carlson	Las Vegas Raiders	77	64.4	62%	29	+2.4
10	Jake Camarda	Tampa Bay Buccaneers	81	63.1	64%	29	+1.4
11	Cameron Dicker	Los Angeles Chargers	80	64.4	85%	12	+1.0
12	Greg Zuerlein	New York Jets	64	64.8	91%	6	+0.5
13	Ka'imi Fairbairn	Houston Texans	56	64.3	66%	19	+0.5
14	Wil Lutz	Denver Broncos	78	65.2	91%	7	+0.5
15	Greg Joseph	Minnesota Vikings	78	64.5	78%	16	+0.2
16	Jason Myers	Seattle Seahawks	85	63.4	65%	29	+0.1
17	Matt Prater	Arizona Cardinals	74	64.6	89%	8	0.0
18	Harrison Butker	Kansas City Chiefs	84	65.3	87%	11	−0.6
19	Eddy Pineiro	Carolina Panthers	54	64.3	67%	17	−0.7
20	Justin Tucker	Baltimore Ravens	99	64.4	81%	19	−1.4
21	Joey Slye	Washington Commanders	69	64.9	93%	5	−1.4
22	Bradley Pinion	Atlanta Falcons	79	64.5	84%	12	−2.2
23	Brandon Aubrey	Dallas Cowboys	109	64.5	91%	9	−2.8
24	Jake Moody	San Francisco 49ers	90	62.5	60%	34	−2.9
25	Dustin Hopkins	Cleveland Browns	76	63.5	66%	26	−3.4
26	Ethan Evans	Los Angeles Rams	82	64.5	89%	9	−4.0
27	Brandon McManus	Jacksonville Jaguars	84	64.3	77%	19	−4.2
28	Matt Gay	Indianapolis Colts	92	64.1	78%	20	−4.2
29	Jake Elliott	Philadelphia Eagles	90	64.8	81%	17	−6.1
30	Chris Boswell	Pittsburgh Steelers	76	63.6	72%	21	−7.1
31	Jason Sanders	Miami Dolphins	88	64.6	85%	13	−12.3

Points compare each kickoff's expected-points result with the league-average kickoff. Onside kicks are listed separately and left out of points. Average distance is measured from the kicking spot to where the ball was caught or reached the goal line; a touchback counts the full distance. Returns exclude touchbacks, out-of-bounds kicks and fair catches. Minimum 30 kickoffs.

Kickoff Specialist Rankings in Other Seasons

2026 · 2025 · 2024 · 2022 · 2021 · 2020 · 2019 · 2018 · 2017 · 2016

Other 2023 NFL Rankings

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