2023 NFL Kickoff Touchback Percentage Leaders

The share of a kickoff specialist's kickoffs that were touchbacks. High means power; whether it is good depends on the rules and the coach's plan.

More is better under this season's rules: a touchback ends the play with no return. Only specialists with enough kickoffs are ranked. In 2023, Joey Slye (93%) led NFL kickoff specialists in kickoff touchback percentage, ahead of Wil Lutz (91%) and Brandon Aubrey (91%). 31 kickoff specialists qualify (minimum 30 kickoffs). The median qualified kickoff specialist had 78%.

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.

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

All 2023 NFL kickoff specialist rankings

Kickoff Touchback Percentage in other seasons: 2026 2025 2024 2022 2021 2020 2019 2018 2017 2016

More 2023 NFL kickoff specialist leaderboards

Other 2023 NFL rankings

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