NASHVILLE – Titans punter Ryan Stonehouse set records during his rookie season.
Now, his jersey and cleats are set to make their way to the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
The Titans on Tuesday are in the process of mailing memorabilia to Canton, Ohio, for a display after Stonehouse finished the 2022 season with a gross average of 53.10 yards per punt (90 punts for 4,779 yards). Stonehouse broke Sammy Baugh's single-season NFL record of 51.40 yards per punt, which was established in 1940 and was never matched among qualifiers (2.5 punts per team game) until Stonehouse's rookie campaign.
The Pro Football Hall of Fame contacted the Titans requesting items to commemorate his record-breaking season.
"It's surreal, honestly," Stonehouse said on Tuesday. "It's the last thing I was expecting. But it's such a cool honor. Going undrafted, and kind of having the odds against you, to be able to do something that hasn't been done for 80-something years, it is such a big honor to me. And to break it from a guy like Sammy Baugh, it's special."
Stonehouse, who made the team as an undrafted free agent from Colorado State, finished the 2022 season with a net punting average of 44.03 yards per punt, establishing a new NFL record for the highest net average by a rookie punter. He broke the record set by Indianapolis' Rigoberto Sanchez, who averaged 42.64 net yards per punt as a rookie in 2017.
Stonehouse said he'll work this offseason to be even better in 2023.
"It think this season had some highs, and I think managing those highs and trying to remain consistent was my main goal the whole time," Stonehouse said. "I felt like I did that a lot with my gross. Heading into next year I want to improve on some of the things I need to keep up in those highs, like the inside the 20 or the net average. Similarly, with how the gross went this year, I'd love to build that consistency.
"I think overall it was such a long rookie year for me, with the draft prep, and competing with Brett (Kern) in the preseason games. It flew by so quick, now that you reminisce on it. But it was such a cool way to start my career."
