On the surface, punter Sav Rocca's numbers don't stand out. His gross average of 41.6 yards per punt ranks tied for 27th in the league. His net average of 38.0 yards per punt is good for a tie for 16th in the league.
Still, Rocca owns the two best single-season net punting averages in franchise history. If he maintains his current average of 38.0, that would be second place in franchise history. Last year, Rocca set the record with an average net of 38.2 yards per punt.
But Sports Illustrated stat geek David Sabino wanted to find a better way to gauge punters other than gross and net averages. Sabino concocted a rating system that incorporates all of the "elements of effective punting." While the system isn't perfect, it doesn't take into account weather but how can that be quantified to begin with, it helps to provide equal footing to judge punters across the league as a whole.
And after punching in the numbers, Rocca ranked 10th on Sabino's scale. The numbers were as of Dec. 7, so two games have been played since then, but it certainly shows that raw numbers don't tell the whole story. Rocca finished ahead of Pro Bowl punters Shane Lechler (14th) and Andy Lee (15th). In case you were wondering, Dallas' Mat McBriar finished at the top of the list and the Packers' Jeremy Kapinos was at the bottom.
-- Posted by Chris McPherson, 12:10 p.m., December 22
