Punt

N ot all of the blame for the Ravens' scoring problems should be placed on the offense. Some fingers need to point at the team's lackluster punt-return game, which hasn't put Joe Flacco and teammates in the best field position. The Ravens have the 30th-ranked punt-return unit in the NFL, averaging a paltry 4.1 yards. No other Ravens team has struggled like this one returning punts. The worst ranking in team history is 25th (2006). The lowest average is 7.7 yards (1999 and 2003)

Despite cornerback Lardarius Webb's appearing to miss his second straight day of practice because of a toe injury on his left foot, Ravens special teams coordinator Jerry Rosburg isn't ruling Webb out on punt returns. Webb is tied for 10th in the NFL with a 10.7-yard average on punt returns, but his absence in practice would seem to throw some doubt on his availability for Sunday night's clash with the San Diego Chargers. Still, Rosburg clung to the possibility that Webb could contribute in some manner despite the toe injury.

One of the reasons the Ravens signed Chris Carr to a two-year, $5 million contract this past offseason involved his proficiency at returning punts. The team - and perhaps fans - finally caught a glimpse of a dividend on that investment Sunday night when Carr enjoyed his best game as a Raven, averaging a season-high 14.2 yards on five returns in the 20-17 overtime win against the Pittsburgh Steelers. "I know that if I keep working and get some space, I'm going to return like I always have in this league," Carr said.

John Harbaugh sometimes gets mocked by sports talk radio callers for being a “special teams guru,” as if his ability to scheme up a good punt protection was the sole reason he was hired as Ravens head coach. He got the job for a myriad of reasons, one of which is his ability to manage and work with others. As he does with his offensive and defensive coordinators, Harbaugh trusts his special teams coordinator, Jerry Rosburg, to handle his area of expertise. But that doesn't mean that Harbaugh has no input on special teams.

Sean Landeta will let his numbers speak for themselves.In his first game for the Los Angeles Rams last Sunday after being waived by the New York Giants, he punted eight times against the Atlanta Falcons for an average of 47 yards, including punts of 66 and 62 yards. The 66-yarder was the longest Rams punt in seven years.Yet Landeta wouldn't gloat, even though he seemed to prove he can still punt with the best of them despite the Giants' decision to release him."Most of the time, any punter in the league who gets seven or eight chances, if the weather's decent, will have a good day," he said.

Super Bowl? What Super Bowl? The three blocks the last two weeks? Forgot about them. Kyle Richardson said his next punt for the Ravens is his only concern, that the future will take care of itself and that he can't change the past. He isn't pondering the stakes of Sunday's AFC championship game at Oakland, and he sure isn't dwelling on the punt team's recent problems. Richardson said as soon as he gets blocked, he moves on and prepares for his next attempt. With three blocked punts in the postseason, there has been plenty to forget.

Punt returns are marked by chaos and random patterns, daring teams to sift through the unpredictability to - depending on your viewpoint - either find the returner or the end zone. And Jim Leonhard loves it. "I think vision comes into play a lot more on punt returns because you don't know what's going to happen until you get the ball in your hands, whereas with kickoffs, it's kind of structured a little bit more," he said. "I've always done punt returns. I haven't returned kickoffs since, really, high school.

COLLEGE PARK -- Maryland coach Ralph Friedgen seems not to have firmly decided on a punt returner. Friedgen first selected sophomore safety Kenny Tate for Saturday's game. But Tate was replaced in the second quarter by Tony Logan and Anthony Wiseman. Tate seemed tentative on whether to catch a punt early in the game and had fumbled a week ago. Tate returned in the third quarter. He made a good running catch on his second return of the half and drew a 15-yard interference penalty on Middle Tennessee State.

COLLEGE PARK -- Maryland field-goal kicker Nick Ferrara says he has been punting for years. But the freshman had never started a college game as the punter until Saturday. Ferrara, subbing for the injured Travis Baltz, could hardly have performed better. Ferrara's first punt traveled 61 yards, pinning Clemson at its 4-yard-line. His second punt went 53 yards and was angled toward the sideline so that it could not be returned. That was important because Clemson is among the nation's best teams at returning punts and kicks.

TAMPA, Fla. - It was a clean run. Tampa Bay Buccaneers tight end Todd Yoder came virtually untouched through the middle of the Ravens' line to block Kyle Richardson's punt, which set up Doug Brien's 24-yard field goal midway through the second quarter. The play was one of many miscues by the Ravens' punt team, which, heading into last night's 22-10 loss to Tampa Bay, was one of the league's best. Against the Bucs, though, everything seemed to go wrong when the Ravens attempted to punt.

Each week, we bring you a Q&A with a Ravens player, coach or team executive to help you learn a little more about the team. Today's guest is special teams coordinator and assistant head coach Jerry Rosburg. Lardarius Webb returned a punt 68 yards for a touchdown in the 24-10 win against the Cleveland Browns, marking the first punt for a score during the John Harbaugh era. How gratifying was it to see that occur? Joy, really, is the word I would use. I'm happy for our players most of all. Our return game has not been what we've wanted it to be, and in either phase, we have high aspirations.

Nearly every time Brandon Banks has taken in a kick, headed upfield and been tackled, he has bounced up and pounded the ball in frustration. Each time, the message seems the same: If not for that one man, that last man to beat, that would have been the one that went the distance. "He can't do it alone," Washington Redskins special teams coach Danny Smith said. "That's for sure. " A year ago, Banks was all but alone as a playmaker for the Redskins, and his returns of kicks and punts were the one reason to stop and pay attention.

Ravens kicker Billy Cundiff is enduring the worst stretch of his career from long distance, missing five of six field-goal attempts from 50 yards or more. But Cundiff, who went to the Pro Bowl last season, is 20-for-21 from under 50 yards this season. Still, coach John Harbaugh conceded during his weekly news conference Monday that Cundiff's struggles could affect decisions on whether to attempt a long-range field goal, punt the ball or go for it on fourth down. “It could, I think, especially with the weather getting a little tougher,” Harbaugh said.

In the Ravens' stunning 22-17 loss to the Seattle Seahawks at CenturyLink Field Sunday, the special teams put forth a comedy of errors that left no one on the Ravens in much of a mood to laugh. The Ravens' third loss of the season — each following significant wins — was punctuated by lapses on special teams. From kick returner David Reed's costly fumbles to kicker Billy Cundiff's continued difficulties from beyond 50 yards to punter Sam Koch's unexpected short punt, the unit contributed heavily to Sunday's setback.

The Ravens' game-winning heroics in their 23-20 victory over the Pittsburgh Steelers might not have occurred if not for a questionable decision by the home team Sunday night. On the Steelers' penultimate possession of the game, the team sent out its field-goal unit on fourth down-and-5 at the Ravens' 29-yard line with 2:37 left in the fourth quarter. But Pittsburgh allowed the play clock to run out, drawing a delay-of-game penalty and pushing kicker Shaun Suisham out of his comfort zone.

Heinz Field in Pittsburgh is generally regarded throughout the NFL as having one of the worst surface conditions on which to play. Sam Koch has a different perspective. The clumps of grass and patches of dirt at Heinz Field are prime targets that the Ravens punter aims for when he's trying to land punts inside the Steelers' 20-yard line. In his career, Koch has dropped 14 punts inside the 20 at Heinz Field - more than any other opposing stadium he has visited. “That ground is typically a little softer,” Koch said.

More honors for James Rooths, nonpareil punt returner for Shepherd College the last several years. The ex-Carver High standout has been named to the Football Gazette's All-American team for Division II. At the same time, Rooths was named the division's specialist player of the year after capping his career with 10 punt return touchdowns. Another Shepherd player, Chris Field (Severna Park), received honorable mention All- America for his work as the team's leading tackler from his defensive end position.

ASHBURN, Va. - Special teams for the Washington Redskins have been anything but that lately, but coach Steve Spurrier expressed his confidence in the embattled unit that was woeful on Sunday. The Redskins' 26-10 win over the Houston Texans made it easy to overlook two missed field goals, two 10-yard punts and three punt returns that gained a total of 3 yards, but Spurrier said the team did not plan any significant changes. Cornerback Champ Bailey will return to the punt return duties he had handled for six games before losing the job to defensive back Bruce Branch last week after fumbling punts in consecutive games against the New York Giants and Philadelphia Eagles.

In just his third year in the NFL, Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver Mike Wallace has developed into one of the most dangerous deep threats in the league. Don't count Ravens cornerback Lardarius Webb as being impressed. Despite Wallace leading the NFL in catches of 40 yards or more (six) and ranking fourth in receiving yards (800), Webb said Wednesday that he thinks Wallace's teammate Antonio Brown is a better receiver. “Every time somebody asks me, they're always talking about Mike Wallace,” Webb said.

As a former special teams coordinator for the Philadelphia Eagles, John Harbaugh has a personal interest in the Ravens' special teams. Naturally, the Ravens head coach had an opinion on the 82-yard punt return for a touchdown the team surrendered to Patrick Peterson in the second quarter of the Ravens' 30-27 win against the Arizona Cardinals Sunday. “Well, you've got to tackle, you know?” Harbaugh said during his weekly news conference Monday. “The punt return, we looked bad on that. We didn't get down the field fast enough. We didn't look fast at all. We didn't tackle.