Bills Re-Sign Former Starting Punter Amidst Salary Cap Purge
The Buffalo Bills made a special teams addition amidst releasing multiple well-known veteran players on Wednesday.
In addition to announcing that they were moving on from All-Pro safety Jordan Poyer and starting center Mitch Morse amongst others, the Bills signed familiar punter Matt Haack. With two seasons remaining on the three-year deal that veteran Sam Martin signed last offseason, it appears as if the Bills will enter offseason workouts with two punters under contract.
The 29-year-old Haack was Buffalo's starter in 2021 when he punted a league-low 52 times. He spent the entire 2022 campaign with the Indianapolis Colts but was unable to secure a full-time job in 2023. Haack made his lone appearance as an injury replacement for the Cleveland Browns in Week 17, averaging 51.7 yards per boot in a win over the New York Jets.
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With Sam Martin tweaking his hamstring in the Bills' AFC Wildcard victory over the Pittsburgh Steelers, Buffalo signed Haack, a street free agent, onto its active roster as an insurance policy prior to facing the Kansas City Chiefs in the divisional round. Haack's services were not needed as Martin was able to tough it out against the Chiefs.
Over seven pro seasons, the first four of which came with the Miami Dolphins, Haack has accounted for a 44.5 punting average. His one season as a Bill yielded a career-low 37.6 net punting average.
In two years with Buffalo, Martin has punted only 96 times for a 46.7 average (40.5 net).
Haack has reportedly earned a reputation as a kicker-friendly holder. With Haack holding in 2021, Bills' kicker Tyler Bass posted a career-best 87.5 success rate on field goals and made all 51 extra-point attempts.
