It’s likely going to be a busy offseason for the Cincinnati Bengals and they got things started on Tuesday by signing Ryan Rehkow to a two-year extension. The move means that the record-setting punter is now under contract with the Bengals through the 2026 season.
The undrafted free agent out of BYU originally signed with the team in late July, just before the start of training camp and he eventually won the punting job in a competition against Brad Robbins. In the first start of his career, Rehkow showed off his booming leg by uncorking the longest punt in franchise history with an 80-yarder in Week 1.
If you’re wondering what an 80-yard punt looks like, you can see that below.
During that Week 1 loss to the Patriots, Rehkow averaged 64.5 yards per punt, which still stands as the NFL record for the highest single-game gross punting average for a punter who has at least four punts or more in a game.
Rehkow’s 80-yard kick against the Patriots ended being the second-longest kick by any punter all season, only topped by Corey Bojorquez, who had an 84-yarder for the Browns. No other punter in the NFL had a kick of over 75 yards during the season.
Overall, Rehkow’s rookie season with the Bengals ended up being arguably the best punting season in franchise history. Rehkow’s gross punting average of 49.1 yards and his net average 42.9 were both franchise records and they led all rookie punters during the 2024 season.
Of his 53 punts in 2024, Rehkow pinned the Bengals’ opponent inside the 20-yard line a total of 25 times and that 47.2% rate ranked ninth in the NFL.
This could be the start of a busy offseason for a Bengals team that’s looking to get extensions done with Ja’Marr Chase and Trey Hendrickson along with a new contract for Tee Higgins, who’s expected to be hit with the franchise tag.
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