BY DAN BEGNOCHE
The Buffalo Bills were accustomed to making teams pay once the punt unit marched onto the field last year. One year later, the punt unit is struggling. And its leader, punter Shawn Powell, is kaput.
The team officially announced the release of the 24-year-old Friday, with coach Doug Marrone telling reporters much of problem had to do with the punter's hang time, or lack thereof.
"Obviously you can say we could’ve had better leverage, but when you’re covering balls that are under four seconds it’s very difficult to cover. That’s just the truth," Marrone told reporters.
Buffalo News reporter Mark Gaughan broke down Powell's kicks from Thursday night's 37-24 loss, which showed a dreadful average from a continuing trend. Powell's eight punts averaged 3.27 seconds, not great when trying to help your return team.
Marrone broke it down pretty simply. Allowing the most punt returns in the league, combined with returns like Travis Benjamin's 79-yard scamper, equals a change of the guard.
"It’s not very difficult," he said, "you look to see how many times you’re covering, you’re covering more than anyone else, it’s only a matter of time in this league before you get exposed."
