Kansas City Chiefs face difficult decision with Dustin Colquitt

Dustin Colquitt has been a very good punter for a very long time, but the cap-strapped Chiefs must make a difficult decision moving forward.

With Derrick Johnson’s departure via free agency and Tamba Hali’s assumed departure either through release or retirement, Dustin Colquitt stands as the last vestige of Carl Peterson’s near two decade reign with the Kansas City Chiefs. Colquitt is at the end of a contract that made him the highest-paid punter in football and saw him receive a base salary of just over $4 million in 2017.

With the Chiefs cap situation, paying a punter $4 million dollars is obviously out of the question. But at what price is Dustin Colquitt worth the extra money over a younger, less experienced leg?Before we get to whether or not the Chiefs should bring him back, allow me to opine about Colquitt’s greatness for a moment.

For 13 seasons, Chiefs fans have been consistently spoiled by the production of only one position; punter. I know that’s an incredibly minor consolation prize for a decade-plus of mostly misery, but the sheer magnitude of Colquitt’s sustained excellence and efficiency in pinning teams inside the 20 may have left us taking the statistic for granted.

Colquitt currently sits 4th all-time in punts inside the 20. But his efficiency in pinning teams back tells a different story:

1.) Jeff Feagles (88-09) – 554 In/20 – 32.3%
2.) Shane Lechler (00-17) – 469 In/20 – 32.5%
3.) Brad Maynard (97-11) – 439 In/20 – 32..8%
4.) Dustin Colquitt (05-11) – 420 In/20 – 40.7%
5.) Craig Hentrich (94-09) – 399 In/20 – 34.7%
6.) Sean Landeta (85-05) – 381 In/20 – 27.2%
7.) Matt Tuck (95-11) – 373 In/20 – 32.6%
8.) Andy Lee (04-17) – 372 In/20 – 32.8%
9.) Donnie Jones (06-17) – 364 In/20 – 32.8 %
10.) Sam Koch (06-17) – 357 In/20 – 37.7%

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As you can see, when it comes to consistency over a massive chunk of seasons, Colquitt is an absolute freak. If there was ever a punter to be labeled a “monster”, it is him. He’s more than justified his 3rd round selection in the 2005 draft and is a no-doubt future member of the Chiefs Hall of Fame. But what about the immediate future?

Many Chiefs followers have noted a down tick in his production this past season. Which is true, but Colquitt’s “down” season still saw him in the top 10 of punts inside the 20 (tied for 10th) and the top 5 of percentage of punts inside the 20 (4th). He hit these marks while sitting near the very bottom of the league in total punts, at only 65 (25th).

This kind of consistent production and reliability doesn’t come along often in the NFL. Specifically at punter, its a don’t-know-what-you-got-till-it’s-gone scenario. Punters cannot typically directly win or lose a game for you, but they can certainly make wins much easier or much more difficult, and Colquitt has spent 13 years proving he constantly plays his part in giving the Chiefs a better chance to win. Plus he’s a lefty. Bill Belichick has a left-foot fetish for punters and you should, too.

So at what point is Colquitt’s consistency worth keeping over the money saved letting him walk? Like most things, it depends. If Reid, Toub, Veach and co. have their eyes on a punter in the draft who they really like, I trust them to let go of one of the greatest punters in the history of the NFL for a rookie.

Next: Trade Justin Houston? A hypothetical scenario.

But if they aren’t completely sold on anyone, and Colquitt is willing to take the ol’ hometown discount to finish out his career in K.C., I see zero problem with the Chiefs bringing him back. A yearly financial sweet spot of between $1.5-2.5 million wouldn’t cause me to lose sleep at night over what could have been done with the money saved bringing in a new punter.

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