More punter movement is taking place during the early stages of free agency. Jake Bailey will be on the move in 2026.
Bailey has agreed to a three-year deal with the Falcons, ESPN’s Adam Schefter reports. This will be a $9MM pact with $5MM in full guarantees. Bailey’s career to date had been spent in the AFC East, but that will no longer be the case.
The Falcons have added two AFC East specialists today, agreeing to terms with Bailey and 2025 Jets kicker Nick Folk. Bailey spent the past three seasons with the Dolphins, moving to Miami after playing out his rookie contract with the Patriots. This marks an interesting reunion for Bailey and Folk; they were teammates from 2019-22, each playing four years with the Pats.
This will be Bailey’s first time as primarily an indoor punter, and he has a standout season on his resume. Bailey’s 2020 season produced a first-team All-Pro honor, as he averaged a career-best 48.7 yards per boot for the Pats that year. The Patriots replaced Ryan Allen with Bailey following Super Bowl LIII, which featured quite a few punts; special teams aficionado Bill Belichick drafted Bailey in Round 5 in 2019.
Last season marked Bailey’s best in terms of distance as a Dolphin, with the Stanford alum averaging 47.7 yards per punt. Miami has not replaced the 28-year-old specialist on its roster just yet.
Oooo
Falcons have done well with their punters over the years. Of course they get a lot of live game reps.