The calls for Tommy Townsend to be noticed started in the middle of the Kansas City Chiefs’ most recent game, a win over the Green Bay Packers in Week 9 at Arrowhead Stadium. It was clear for the entirety of the contest that the Chiefs punter was having himself an incredible night.
On an evening when the Chiefs offense sputtered, it was the defense that dominated to help right the ship. From there, it was special teams’ excellence from every one of Dave Toub’s units that put the Chiefs over the top in a close 13-7 victory.
On Wednesday, the National Football League announced their weekly award winners for both conferences, and Townsend was named the Special Teams Player of the Week in the AFC for Week 9.
Tommy Townsend has been named the AFC Special Teams Player of the Week.
On Sunday afternoon, Townsend had six punts for the Chiefs, by far his high on the season, and made them all count—each and every one. He averaged an incredible 57 yards per punt for the day, but he was also incredibly accurate and pinned the Packers deep in their own territory on multiple occasions. For old-school fans who love excellence in the details, it was a thing of beauty.
Townsend gets the majority of his action in practice for the Chiefs as a seldom-used weapon, and his six punts in Week 9 equal his total number of punts through the first four weeks of the season. Still, the young specialist has improved considerably despite the lack of opportunities from last season, and he’s rewarding Toub’s confidence in him through some rookie struggles.
Townsend, a product of the University of Florida, joined the Chiefs as a heralded rookie free agent after the 2020 NFL Draft and has held down the position ever since despite facing some solid offseason competition.