Chiefs punter battle won’t grab headlines but it could decide a roster spot

The Kansas City Chiefs take their special teams roles extremely seriously. Quite frankly, most NFL teams likely do. But when it comes to earning the starting special teams roles in Kansas City, there is a real honor in receiving one of those spots.

Special teams coach Dave Toub has also been well-documented as helping to determine some of the final roster spots during the roster cutdown. If special teams present an edge for one player over another, it could likely make or break a final decision for the Chiefs.

Punter is a spot that was once met with little question on the Chiefs' roster. Dustin Colquitt held that role for 15 seasons. But in the years since, Tommy Townsend and Matt Araiza have each been given opportunities as the team's punter. Now, entering this year's training camp, there is yet another competition for that spot.

Sizing up the punting competition

Araiza is the incumbent name after getting his first crack last year. Meanwhile, rookie undrafted free agent Eddie Czaplicki will look to win the punter battle in his first-ever NFL training camp. Czaplicki is hoping to do what Townsend was able to—make the Chiefs' roster after signing as a UDFA. As for Araiza, his strength and power are what he will likely continue to lean on to stay in Kansas City.

Araiza finished last season with a yards-per-punt average of 48.8. In total, he had a moderate finish in net yards per punt attempt, ending at 41.5. Nine of his 62 punts resulted in a touchback. However, Araiza also tallied 25 punts that were downed inside the opponent's 20-yard line.

Araiza certainly had plenty of booming shots last season. But in certain moments, the spins or bounces did not go his way as often as one would anticipate. There were some shots that could have flipped the field or resulted in better field position for the Kansas City defense. Nonetheless, Araiza likely finished with more of a solid season than a disappointing one in his first NFL campaign.

Looking at Eddie Czaplicki

What should Chiefs fans know about Czaplicki? He began his college career at Arizona State. Going into the 2023 season, Czaplicki transferred to USC. The incoming rookie UDFA was with the Trojans for the last two years.

Czaplicki averaged 43.2 yards per punt in 2021 and then 46 yards per punt in 2022 while with the Sun Devils. After joining USC, he averaged 43.3 yards per punt in 2023 and 47.8 yards per punt in 2024. He had a combined 40 punts downed inside the opponent's 20-yard line in the last two seasons of his college career.

More notably, Czaplicki also handled kickoff duties throughout the duration of his college career. It would be a little surprising to see Kansas City pull Harrison Butker from that role in 2025. But if Czaplicki can make his mark in the punter battle during training camp, that is a nice added element to have in his back pocket.

The Chiefs' competition at punter won't grab as many headlines as other position battles will over the next month. Still, this is a spot that can mean a lot for Kansas City throughout the upcoming season. Either Araiza or Czaplicki will also have to be able to garner snaps as the holder on field goal attempts. Moreover, setting up the team's defense in favorable positions is always important as the season goes on.