Broncos make special teams addition

Waived shortly after the Bears used a fourth-round pick on Iowa punter Tory Taylor, Gill will head to Denver after two years as Chicago’s punter. It appears he will compete with incumbent Riley Dixon for the Broncos’ punting gig.

The Bears placing fourth-round-level importance on upgrading at punter provided a clear sign Gill would not have a chance to keep his job in Chicago. The cut came days after the draft choice occurred. Gill, 25, served as the Bears’ punter over the past two seasons after arriving in Illinois as a seventh-round pick out of NC State.

Dixon initially arrived in Denver as a seventh-rounder back in 2016, but the team traded him to the Giants to accommodate a Marquette King signing. The latter move did not pan out in Denver, with King lasting only four games with the 2018 team. The Broncos have cycled through punters in the years since, with Dixon coming back — via a two-year, $3.5M deal — during Sean Payton‘s first offseason with the team. No guaranteed money remains on Dixon’s deal.

Gill averaged 46.1 yards per punt last season. Despite punting in Denver’s thin air, Dixon averaged 46.3 per boot. Gill averaged 46 even per punt in 2022, while Dixon fared better with the Rams (career-high 48.4). Both Dixon and Gill finished outside the top 20 in this category last season. Dixon, 30, finished last season having placed 34.2% of his punts inside the 20; Gill closed his second Bears slate at 26.9%.

Should Gill beat out Dixon, the Broncos will have used four punters in the past four seasons. The team deployed four between its 2018 Dixon trade and his 2023 return.