2025 NFL Return Yards Allowed per Punt Leaders
Total return yards allowed divided by every punt that was not blocked, so a fair catch or an out-of-bounds punt counts as zero. College punts whose play text records no outcome are left out. It is the fairest single measure of how much a returner gets to work with.
Lowest comes first. Coverage teams share the credit. In 2025, Mitch Wishnowsky (1.8) topped NFL punters in return yards allowed per punt, ahead of Austin McNamara (1.9) and Tress Way (2.0). 31 punters qualify (minimum 30 punts). The median qualified punter had 4.5.
Final 2025 regular-season numbers, updated October 23, 2026.
| Rk | Player | Team | Ret yds/punt | Punts | Avg | Net | In 20 | In 20 % | TB % | FC % | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Mitch Wishnowsky | Buffalo Bills | 1.8 | 38 | 45.3 | 41.9 | 18 | 47% | 8% | 39% | −1.1 |
| 2 | Austin McNamara | New York Jets | 1.9 | 71 | 46.7 | 43.2 | 32 | 45% | 8% | 35% | +15.3 |
| 3 | Tress Way | Washington Commanders | 2.0 | 56 | 47.3 | 43.9 | 29 | 52% | 7% | 32% | +13.6 |
| 4 | Rigoberto Sanchez | Indianapolis Colts | 2.7 | 44 | 48.8 | 44.7 | 22 | 50% | 7% | 34% | +1.7 |
| 5 | Corliss Waitman | Pittsburgh Steelers | 2.8 | 62 | 45.5 | 41.7 | 26 | 42% | 5% | 35% | +4.4 |
| 6 | Logan Cooke | Jacksonville Jaguars | 3.0 | 60 | 48.0 | 43.0 | 22 | 37% | 10% | 15% | +12.4 |
| 7 | Jordan Stout | Baltimore Ravens | 3.0 | 53 | 50.1 | 44.9 | 24 | 45% | 11% | 11% | +8.8 |
| 8 | Jack Fox | Detroit Lions | 3.1 | 56 | 46.6 | 42.8 | 28 | 50% | 4% | 46% | +4.7 |
| 9 | Riley Dixon | Tampa Bay Buccaneers | 3.3 | 65 | 44.7 | 38.9 | 29 | 45% | 6% | 33% | −7.3 |
| 10 | Ryan Wright | Minnesota Vikings | 3.6 | 65 | 49.0 | 44.5 | 25 | 38% | 5% | 34% | −0.7 |
| 11 | Bradley Pinion | Atlanta Falcons | 3.6 | 64 | 45.1 | 40.6 | 34 | 53% | 5% | 27% | +5.0 |
| 12 | Jeremy Crawshaw | Denver Broncos | 4.1 | 75 | 47.6 | 41.1 | 30 | 40% | 12% | 31% | −1.0 |
| 13 | Jake Bailey | Miami Dolphins | 4.1 | 63 | 47.7 | 42.6 | 21 | 33% | 5% | 30% | +9.2 |
| 14 | Ryan Rehkow | Cincinnati Bengals | 4.3 | 65 | 50.5 | 42.9 | 28 | 43% | 17% | 18% | +7.2 |
| 15 | Tommy Townsend | Houston Texans | 4.5 | 72 | 47.6 | 41.6 | 30 | 42% | 7% | 19% | +0.6 |
| 16 | Daniel Whelan | Green Bay Packers | 4.5 | 49 | 51.7 | 43.9 | 18 | 37% | 16% | 24% | +9.2 |
| 17 | Johnny Hekker | Tennessee Titans | 4.7 | 78 | 46.8 | 40.3 | 22 | 28% | 9% | 27% | −2.5 |
| 18 | Kai Kroeger | New Orleans Saints | 4.8 | 58 | 44.8 | 37.3 | 18 | 31% | 7% | 20% | −22.1 |
| 19 | Braden Mann | Philadelphia Eagles | 4.9 | 72 | 49.9 | 42.8 | 20 | 28% | 11% | 15% | +1.5 |
| 20 | Jamie Gillan | New York Giants | 5.0 | 55 | 44.5 | 38.0 | 17 | 31% | 7% | 31% | −9.4 |
| 21 | J.K. Scott | Los Angeles Chargers | 5.1 | 60 | 47.9 | 41.4 | 23 | 38% | 7% | 38% | +0.1 |
| 22 | Tory Taylor | Chicago Bears | 5.1 | 60 | 47.8 | 40.4 | 21 | 35% | 12% | 15% | −8.7 |
| 23 | Bryce Baringer | New England Patriots | 5.2 | 51 | 47.4 | 40.6 | 21 | 41% | 8% | 29% | −1.0 |
| 24 | Matt Araiza | Kansas City Chiefs | 5.2 | 56 | 47.6 | 41.3 | 25 | 45% | 5% | 29% | +1.7 |
| 25 | Sam Martin | Carolina Panthers | 5.6 | 56 | 47.2 | 40.5 | 27 | 48% | 5% | 29% | +0.5 |
| 26 | AJ Cole | Las Vegas Raiders | 5.6 | 73 | 47.6 | 39.7 | 24 | 33% | 6% | 18% | −12.8 |
| 27 | Michael Dickson | Seattle Seahawks | 5.7 | 52 | 49.0 | 42.2 | 20 | 38% | 6% | 33% | −0.7 |
| 28 | Corey Bojorquez | Cleveland Browns | 5.7 | 93 | 45.8 | 36.8 | 23 | 25% | 12% | 19% | −19.1 |
| 29 | Bryan Anger | Dallas Cowboys | 6.0 | 41 | 48.6 | 42.6 | 14 | 34% | 0% | 32% | +7.9 |
| 30 | Thomas Morstead | San Francisco 49ers | 6.4 | 44 | 43.6 | 36.8 | 22 | 50% | 2% | 36% | −8.6 |
| 31 | Ethan Evans | Los Angeles Rams | 6.7 | 50 | 46.3 | 38.0 | 20 | 40% | 8% | 20% | −11.6 |
Return Yards Allowed per Punt in other seasons: 2026 2024 2023 2022 2021 2020 2019 2018 2017 2016
More 2025 NFL punter leaderboards
- Punts
- Punting Yards
- Gross Punting Average
- Net Punting Average
- Punts Inside the 20
- Inside the 20 Percentage
- Longest Punts
- Punt Touchbacks
- Fair Catches Forced
- Punts Downed
- Punts Out of Bounds
- Punts Returned
- Punt Return Yards Allowed
- Average Punt Return Allowed
- Blocked Punts
- Punt Points Added
- Punt Points per 100 Punts
- Fair Catch Percentage
- Punt Touchback Percentage
- Touchbacks Avoided (STOP Rank)
- Punts Out of Bounds Percentage
- Punts Downed Percentage
- Punt Return Percentage
- Opponent Starting Field Position
- Punts Inside the 10
- Punts of 50+ Yards
- 50+ Yard Punt Percentage
- Inside-20 to Touchback Ratio
- Net Average in Opponent Territory
- Net Average in Cold Weather
- Net Average in Wind
Other 2025 NFL rankings
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