One of the winners of the NFL Draft this year was Bryce Baringer . The New England Patriots punter is entering the final year of his four-year rookie contract, and after what was a less-than-stellar season relative to his prior success, the team could have certainly drafted a replacement.
Instead, they stood pat and didn't draft any of the draft's top punters , including Georgia's Brett Thorson and Syracuse's Jack Stonehouse. Baringer's job was safe, right?
Well, the team didn't let the veteran get out easy. They reportedly invited Indiana punter Mitch McCarthy to this weekend's rookie minicamp on a tryout basis. The national champion with the Hoosiers didn't get drafted, but did earn the invite to come out to Foxboro for the three-day workout.
While McCarthy isn't promised anything and isn't even on the active roster, it does bring up an interesting conversation about a potential positional battle. The Patriots aren't shy about adding competition to their special teams players' plates. Just this offseason, the team signed free agent long snapper Niko Lalos after a successful workout. They also invited former Dolphins long snapper Kneeland Hibbett to rookie camp to compete with incumbent Julian Ashby .
So who is McCarthy, and could he realistically compete for the punting job?
Nov 9, 2024; Tempe, Arizona, USA; Arizona State Sun Devils linebacker Martell Hughes (18) blocks a punt by UCF Knights punter Mitch McCarthy (40) during the first half at Mountain America Stadium, Home of the ASU Sun Devils. Mandatory Credit: Joe Camporeale-Imagn Images | Joe Camporeale-Imagn Images
The Melbourne, Australia, native spent three seasons at UCF after never playing football in his life. The 6-foot-5 McCarthy punted in 51 career gaes, booting the ball 152 times for 6,489 total yards. He transferred to Indiana ahead of the 2025 season, and had 15 punts land inside the 20-yard line en route to the program's first national title.
Baringer, on the other hand, struggled this past season. He punted the ball 51 times (a career-low) and had just 21 of those land inside the 20-yard line. His total yardage continued to dip since being drafted in 2023 -- which could be a good thing, considering how you look at it -- but didn't have the best overall season with ball placement.
One of those games that it was highlighted was the AFC championship against the Denver Broncos . The game became really snowy and footing was hard to come by. Baringer didn't have the best day in terms of deep kicks, but he had a good reason for it.
"So once it got really (expletive) out, and we were punting into that wind, the last thing we want is Marvin Mims touching the ball," Baringer told Patriots Wire's Sophie Weller postgame . "And at the end of the day, I know the yardage doesn't look right, but there's other things that people don't see, that don't get accounted for.
"And I credit a lot of it to Springs (Jeremy Springer), Tom (Quinn), and Vrabes (Mike Vrabel) for just keeping us right in that situation and just understanding. We know how hard it was to kick in that, and our defense, like I said, was playing really well. So that was the game plan."
Baringer is entering a contract season, and according to Spotrac , has a $1.189 million cap hit in 2026. While that number won't break the bank, if the team decides to get ahead of next season's free agency, they could add McCarthy to the 90-man roster following rookie minicamp and usher in a true punting competition in training camp.
McCarthy and the rest of the invited players will take part in the Patriots' rookie minicamp from May 8-10.
This article was originally published on www.si.com/nfl/patriots/onsi as Potential Punting Battle Brewing Ahead of Patriots Rookie Minicamp .
