Five punts of 50 yards or longer in Sunday’s win at Washington helped Lions rookie Sam Martin become the club’s first punter to win NFC Special Teams Player of the Week honors since 1993.
Martin, who had a 72-yard punt to begin the fourth quarter of the Lions’ 27-20 victory at Washington, was named the recipient of the conference’s weekly special teams honor by the NFL on Wednesday. The fifth-round pick from Appalachian State averaged 52.5 yards on six punts, posting a 40.7-yard net average.
According to the NFL, Jim Arnold was the last Lions punter to earn the NFC’s special teams award. For the record, Arnold captured the award for his work in the Lions’ 1993 regular-season finale against Green Bay, a game played at the old Pontiac Silverdome.
In addition to punting, Martin holds on placements and kicks off for Detroit, which is 2-1 entering Sunday’s game vs. 3-0 Chicago.