Bucs punter Riley Dixon answers questions during a news conference Monday at AdventHealth Training Center in Tampa. He averaged 49 yards on three punts during Saturday's preseason victory over the Tennessee Titans. [ JEFFEREE WOO | Times ]
TAMPA — Riley Dixon came out swinging in his Bucs debut. Maybe a little too hard. His first punt in pewter was a 57-yard rocket that sailed through the end zone instead of pinning the Titans inside their 20.
It’s one way to impress the new boss, but in the punting game sometimes less really is more.
“It’s always great to come out to a fresh start, new place and come out swinging,” Dixon said. “The first one got away from me a little bit as expected in the first game, so you build on it and try to gear up for Week 1.”
Dixon, who turns 32 in a couple of weeks, is a veteran entering his 10th NFL season and should stabilize what was a chaotic punting position a year ago.
The Bucs used three punters in 2024: Jake Camarda, Trenton Gill and Jack Browning.
Camarda, a fourth-round pick by the Bucs out of Georgia in 2022, had a big leg and averaged nearly 50 yards per punt over three seasons. But his net average plummeted to 36.5, and he started only four games in 2024. Gill played eight games but netted only 38.7 yards per punt. Browning netted 34.6.
At least in Dixon the Bucs get a proven punter who has played for the Broncos (twice), Giants and Rams, and one with playoff experience.
Riley Dixon punts the ball during Saturday's preseason game against the Titans in Tampa. The Bucs hope the 10th-year veteran will help stabilize the position after they used three punters last season.
Coupled with Chase McLaughlin, one of the most accurate place-kickers in the league, the Bucs have a specials teams battery that should feel like a luxury to head coach Todd Bowles.
“It’s a very good comfort knowing you have a punter who can flip the field and change the field position for you,” Bowles said. “They’re not starting at midfield or anything like that. Obviously, we’ve got to cover. But he’s been a welcome addition. He places it right, he hangs it and he punts it deep, so that’s a big plus for us.
“It will be a breath of fresh air this year.”
Bowles has been breathing easier since McLaughlin arrived in 2023, making 93.6% of his field goal attempts (59 of 63), including going 15 of 18 from 50 yards or more.
“I am very routine-based,” McLaughlin said. “I do the same warmup every time I kick, the same stretching routine every time I kick. There have been a couple things I’ve played with in the offseason. But honestly, we’ve had some success the last couple of seasons so I’m trying to keep everything else the same. ... Take three steps back, pick a target, take some steps over, take a breath and let it ride.”
Likewise, Dixon has thrived playing under Bucs special teams with Thomas McGaughey, who coached him for four seasons with the Giants. In Saturday’s debut, Dixon punted three times for 147 yards, a 49-yard average and 47-yard net while pinning one inside the 20.
Despite his experience, Dixon is wearing a very unveteran-like No. 92. Typically, punters and place-kickers are in single digits, but there’s a story behind it.
Chase McLaughlin, right, celebrates a field goal Saturday against the Titans. He's been one of the NFL's most accurate kickers, particularly from long distance, since arriving in Tampa Bay in 2023. [ JEFFEREE WOO | Times ]
“With the new number rule, obviously there’s some skill guys with single digits. I wore 92 in college,” Dixon said. “It meant something. When I was in college, I was a walk-on kicker and a punter later on.
“It was kind of, ‘Hey, what number do you want? How does 92 sound?’ Not your first choice, but as a walk-on punter, I knew my role and I kind of carried that. It would help me become the kind of player and punter I am. Just another chip on the shoulder and something to go to work in.”
One of Dixon’s career highlights came in a wild-card game against the Bills in January. Trailing 10-7 early in the second quarter, Broncos coach Sean Payton dialed a fake punt on fourth and 9 from Denver’s 43-yard line. Dixon sold the fake before delivering a 15-yard pass to Marvin Mims, Jr., securing the first down. Unfortunately, the drive ultimately ended in a punt, and Dixon’s team fell 31-7.
“I’m from upstate New York, so I had a lot of family and friends,” Dixon said. “Everybody is Bills fans up there, so I put together a decent game, I’d say, in those conditions and it being a playoff game. Being able to throw a fake punt there was really cool for me to do it in front of my whole family.”
Dixon also isn’t afraid to tackle. It may be an anomaly, but his 18 tackles are as many as any active punter.
“I don’t know if it’s a good thing or a bad thing, but it’s also a pride thing,” he said. “The net punt is a huge number. I think any way I can keep that to a minimum, if that means sticking my nose in there from time to time, I’m willing to do it.”
Considering how the Bucs have struggled in the past with the kicking game — they’ve had eight punters and five place-kickers since 2015 — at least Bowles can breathe easier.
“It’s been fun getting to know Riley,” McLaughlin said. “From a football perspective, he’s a true professional. He’s done it for 10 years now, so he knows the ins and outs and the nuances of day to day. The confidence that brings me, of someone who has done it before, it gives me a little bit of peace.”
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