NFL teams have a lot of tough cuts to make this week, and for the Tennessee Titans, those tough cuts include their longest-tenured player.
According to NFL reporter Ari Meirov, the Titans are releasing three-time Pro Bowl punter Brett Kern. He is a 15-year veteran who has played 13 of those seasons with the Titans.
Kern has been with the team since 2009 and did not miss a single game until 2020. His 197 games played for the Titans rank third in team history behind only Hall of Famers Bruce Matthews and Elvin Bethea.
Between 2017 and 2019, Kern emerged as one of the NFL’s top punters, making three straight Pro Bowls. He averaged 49.7 yards per punt in 2017, leading the league and ranking 10th in NFL history for a single season. For his efforts he made his first Pro Bowl and Second-Team All-Pro honors.
In 2019, Kern was voted the First-Team All-Pro punter by the Associated Press.
Undrafted rookie Ryan Stonehouse will be the Tennessee Titans’ starting punter this season. He brings with him extensive punting experience from five years as a starter at Colorado State.
As the starting punter for the Rams, Stonehouse earned All-Conference honors four times, averaging 47.8 yards per punt on 244 punts.
Clearly the Titans were ready to go in a new, younger direction.
Will Brett Kern find a punting job with another team before the season starts?