Braden Mann gets two-year deal following outstanding 2023 season
Braden Mann gets two-year deal following outstanding 2023 season originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia
One of the few Eagles who was still playing well by the end of the season is coming back.
The Eagles announced Tuesday that they had re-signed punter Braden Mann, who broke every franchise punting record last year. The move was first reported by Adam Caplan of Birds 365.
It’s a two-year deal worth $4.2 million with incentives that could bring the total value to $5 million with $2.775 million, Dave Zangaro of NBC Sports Philadelphia reported. The Eagles also announced Tuesday they had agreed to contract terms with long-time long snapper Rick Lovato.
After Arryn Siposs struggled the first two weeks of the season, the Eagles signed Mann in time for the Week 3 game in Tampa.
All Mann did in his 13 games in an Eagles uniform was set an Eagles record with a 43.9 net average and 49.8 gross average. Both previous records were set in 2018 by Cameron Johnston. Mann ranked fifth in the NFL in net average and seventh in gross average.
Over the last 11 weeks of the season, Mann averaged 50.8 yards per punt, 3rd-highest in the league during that span behind Ryan Stonehouse (54.0) and Bryan Anger (51.5).
Mann had spent his first three seasons with the Jets, averaging 45.4 yards per punt with a net average of 39.3. The 43.9 and 49.8 were both career highs.
What made Mann’s performance particularly impressive was that he was often kicking in poor weather conditions in outdoor stadiums late in the season. All the punters ranked ahead of him in net average in 2023 either kicked in the south or in a dome.
After a little bit of a slow start, Mann averaged over 50 yards per punt in eight of the Eagles’ last 11 games, including the last three. He became the first punter in Eagles history to average over 50 yards in three straight games.
Siposs had been the Eagles’ punter since 2021. He replaced Johnston, who signed with the Texans after the 2020 season. Sipposs and Johnson are both from Australia. Mann is the first Eagles punter not from Australia since Donnie Jones from 2013 through 2017.
The Eagles haven’t had a Pro Bowl punter since 1972, when Bill Bradley made the Pro Bowl team. Bradley was a starting safety and had nine interceptions but also averaged 40.2 yards on 56 punts. They’ve never had a pure punter make a Pro Bowl team.
The Eagles on Tuesday also announced that they had agreed to contract terms with long snapper Lovato, who’s now been with the Eagles longer than everybody other than Brandon Graham and Lane Johnson.
Lovato replaced Jon Dorenbos late in the 2016 season, made the Pro Bowl in 2019 and has played in 118 consecutive games since – 129 including the postseason. If he plays in the Eagles’ first 10 games in 2024, he’ll move into the all-time Eagles top-10 in consecutive games and if he plays all 17 games he’ll be at 135 in a row, which would be the 8th-longest streak in franchise history.
Lovato is one of 15 NFL players to play the maximum-possible 115 games since the start of the 2017 season, and his streak of 118 straight games is 11th-longest currently but guaranteed to be at least 10th longest after Week 1 next year – if he plays – because Jason Kelce’s streak will end next year on opening day.
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