Packers Sign Second-Generation NFL Punter to Practice Squad
GREEN BAY, Wis. – The Green Bay Packers might have added more than an emergency punter when they signed Ryan Winslow to the practice squad on Saturday. They might have signed a challenger to JK Scott for next season.
Winslow, an undrafted free agent out of the University of Pittsburgh in 2018, punted six times in two games for the Arizona Cardinals in 2019 in place of veteran Andy Lee. He had a net average of 44.2 yards on those kicks.
Scott, a fifth-round draft pick in 2018, is 27th out of 29 qualifying punters with a 36.8-yard net average this season. While he’s 15th with what would be a franchise-record 45.57-yard average, he’s had two punts returned for touchdowns. The lack of improvement has been discouraging for the club. He was 26th with a 38.8-yard net as a rookie and 24th with a 39.9-yard net in 2019.
Winslow competed in training camp for the Chicago Bears in 2018 and the Cardinals in 2019 and again this past summer.
As a senior at Pitt in 2017, Winslow was named first-team all-ACC as he averaged a career-high and conference-best 44.5 yards per punt. He was the team’s punter all four seasons.
His father, George Winslow, punted at the University of Wisconsin for two seasons – he was the Badgers’ first scholarship punter – and then the Cleveland Browns in 1987 and New Orleans Saints in 1989.
Ryan Winslow was recruited to Pitt by then-coach Paul Chryst; Chryst is now the coach at Wisconsin.
With the playoffs approaching, the Packers this week have signed an emergency kicker and now an emergency punter. On Tuesday, they signed former UCLA kicker J.J. Molson to the practice squad. In case you were wondering, yes, there are beer ties.
To make room on the practice squad, the Packers released tight end Dax Raymond.
