If you’re a player who puts foot to pigskin for the Las Vegas Raiders, you’re having an amazing week. First, the team decided to sign kicker Daniel Carlson to a four-year deal that makes him the third-highest paid at his position going forward. Their encore was to sign punter A.J. Cole to a similar multi-year deal, inking him to a four-year extension of his own, one reportedly worth $12.4 million and includes $5.9 million guaranteed, per Adam Schefter of ESPN.
Cole, 26, entered the NFL as an undrafted free agent of the [Oakland] Raiders in 2019, and has since logged 160 punts for 7,525 yards. His career long is an eye-opening 74-yarder achieved in his first year, but he also booted a 71-yarder in 2021, and has zero blocks on his resume while averaging yards per punt over the course of his three years in the league.
The Raiders have a lot to figure out in 2022, beginning with who might become their new head coach, but they won’t find themselves worried about kickoffs or punts for years to come or, at least, that’s the plan.
