Despite spending much of the season below .500, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers locked up the NFC South title on Sunday. And they can absolutely thank punter Jake Camarda for that.
He pulled off one of the more athletic efforts you’ll ever see from a punter.
With the Bucs up six points against the Panthers and punting with 42 seconds to go, a low snap had Camarda in a desperate scramble towards the sideline. In what could have been a disaster for the Bucs, Camarda managed to get a punt off right by the sidelines and have the ball downed around the two-yard line.
It was ridiculous.
Bucs punter Jake Camarda saves a potential disaster of a punt!
📺: #CARvsTB on FOX
📱: Stream on NFL+ https://t.co/iBHCs5kpjA pic.twitter.com/xaMgChEhJI— NFL (@NFL) January 1, 2023
Now, the play would end up getting called back due to a penalty. But it did make a huge difference. By pulling off that heads-up effort, Camarda gave the Panthers no choice but to accept the penalty (giving Camarda a re-punt). The whole punt took 11 seconds off the clock too.
The play easily could have turned into a takeaway or put the Panthers in excellent field position. Instead, they had almost no shot of mounting a comeback drive.
No wonder everyone was impressed with Camarda there. It was a sensational play.
This was how Twitter reacted
This is incredible https://t.co/3q4F9VrQ9N
— Ben DuBose (@BenDuBose) January 1, 2023
He might need to be all pro off this alone man https://t.co/yZpgU98DvQ
— Alex 👋 (@Dubs408) January 1, 2023
That is the coolest thing a punter has ever done. By a lot. There isn’t even a close second. https://t.co/LmtcaN8lQY
— Matt Burnell (@mdburnell) January 1, 2023
Best punt ever? https://t.co/31JkQLHVEa
— Matt B (@matt_bart) January 1, 2023
Jake Camarda should win NFL MVP just for getting this punt off (even though it ended up not counting due to a flag) #Buccaneers #PunterForMVP pic.twitter.com/Xxd0NgaH1h
— John Breech (@johnbreech) January 1, 2023
How good was this from Jake Camarda?! 😨#GoBucs | #NFLTwitter pic.twitter.com/bzyH9G6uzM
— Kicker Update (@kickerupdate) January 1, 2023
Oh sweet.. Jake Camarda is the greatest athlete in the NFL
WHAT A PLAY
— Pat McAfee (@PatMcAfeeShow) January 1, 2023
Play of the week for what it meant to their season https://t.co/IED0PlPtyI
— Jermaine (@The_Jermaine) January 1, 2023
Yes- 10000% https://t.co/089YVcPRLy
— 𝗭𝗮𝗰 𝗕𝗹𝗼𝗯𝗻𝗲𝗿🎙 (@ZacOnTheMic) January 1, 2023
Give him all the rookie awards for that play alone.
