With an 83-yard bomb this past Sunday, A.J. Cole III is now etched in the Silver and Black’s record book. And, in a category that’ll likely take some time for someone to top, no less. The Las Vegas Raiders punter sent a fourth-quarter punt into orbit. If the gunner had stopped the ball at the one-yard line, it would’ve been an 82-yard blast downed deep in the Minnesota Vikings’ territory.
Instead, the blast went 83 yards and into the end zone for the touchback. Still, that doesn’t diminish the distance to which Cole powered the ball with his mighty right leg. He did boot the ball from his own 17-yard line on a 4th-and-4 down at the 12:21 mark in the fourth quarter, after all.
Another one for the Raiders’ books in 2023
Cole stands alone on the single-season record books by beating his previous long of 74 yards (back in 2019) and adding a nine-yard cushion to the previous best mark. The previous record holder was the legendary Shane Lechler, who had a career-long 73-yard blast during the 2003 Raiders campaign.
P AJ Cole logged an 83-yard punt, the longest of his career.
Cole’s 83-yard punt is tied for the fourth longest punt in the NFL since 2000.
— Raiders PR (@RAIDERS_PR) December 10, 2023
But Cole’s fine outing truly demonstrates how absurd the 3-0 loss the Raiders had to the visiting Vikings was. Cole’s eight-punt, 433-yard afternoon marks the same yardage both the Las Vegas and Minnesota offenses had combined. The Vikings generated 231 total yards, while the Raiders produced 202 for exactly 433 yards of total offense. Gross.
Two of Cole’s punts landed inside the Vikings’ 20-yard line. Another two landed in the end zone for touchbacks, and the boot specialist had a 54.1 average per punt. But, due to the 48 return yards Minnesota had, Cole’s net average was 48.1 yards per boot.
Cole’s counterpart, the Vikings’ Ryan Wright, had a busy afternoon, too. He had eight punts himself for 383 yards (a long of 59), and four of his boots landed inside the Raiders’ 20-yard line. His average of 47.9 was healthy, but the 56 return yards by Las Vegas dropped his net average to 40.8 per boot.
What about the other half of the Raiders elite kicking battery?
Daniel Carlson was relegated as a spectator for much of Sunday’s loss. His lone snap of the afternoon was his 72-yard kickoff to start the third quarter. That’s it. No field goal attempts, no extra points.
In 91 career games, attempting zero field goals this past Sunday was the seventh time that happened in Carlson’s career. The lack of participation also marked the fifth time in his career that Carlson wasn’t called upon to kick an extra point.
So it doesn’t happen very often.
All instances were losses, by the way.
The Raiders did get into field goal range on their first offensive possession of the third quarter. Rookie quarterback Aidan O’Connell hooked up with slot receiver Hunter Renfrow for a 38-yard catch and run, and Las Vegas found itself on the Vikings’ 11-yard line. But one play, a penalty, and a Renfrow fumble later, the promising drive was thwarted—no field goal, no points.
Meanwhile, Carlson’s counterpart, Greg Joseph, was the difference-maker with his go-ahead and eventual game-winning 36-yard field goal after the two-minute warning in the fourth quarter.
Up next for the downtrodden Raiders (5-8 overall) is a short-week matchup with the equally p******** Los Angeles Chargers (also 5-8). Expect Cole to continue proving he’s a punt god, and here’s to hoping Carlson gets in on the action, too.
Carlson is 22 of 23 (95.7%) against the Bolts in his 10 career games, with his lone miss coming in Week 10 of the 2019 season. He’s also 18 of 21 on extra points (85.7%), scoring 76 of his 675 career points against the Chargers.
Cole, on the other hand, has booted the ball 35 times for 1,647 yards (47.06 yards per boot) in his nine career games against the Bolts. L.A. has racked up 115 return yards on those punts, which drops Cole’s net average to 42.6.
*Top Photo: Getty Images