Let’s take a look at the five best punters in San Francisco 49ers history.
Punting is often a thankless job.
To fans, at least, a punt is a sign of a failed offense, and fans will complain when the special teams unit takes to the field and kicks the ball back to the other team instead of trying to score.
However, a good and consistent punter can greatly improve a team’s chances of winning. Punting can flip the field position and drive the opposing offense deep into their own half, or even to their own goal line.
Although a punt isn’t considered a highlight play unless it’s blocked, it’s still a very important play. The San Francisco 49ers have had some great punters throughout their illustrious history, dating all the way back to 1946.
Interestingly, only a few Niners punters have had significant long-term roles with the franchise, including a few recent additions to what we consider the all-time list.
Our rankings take into account things like longevity, net punting yards, kicks inside the other team’s 20-yard line, and, of course, individual accolades.
Here are the five best punters in San Francisco history.
There are a few punters who didn’t make it into the top five list but are worth mentioning here.
Did you know that 49ers quarterbacks Franke Albert and Steve Spurrier were punters in addition to throwing the ball? Albert even led the AAFC in punting in 1949 with a 48.2-yard average.
Meanwhile, Max Runager also won two Super Bowl championship rings with the Niners in the 1980s.
However, it doesn’t make it into the top five.
5th place: Mitch Wisznowski (as of 2019)
The fact that current San Francisco punter Mitch Wisznowski is on this list says a lot about the lack of longevity of these specialists in team history.
But Wisznowski was drafted by the 49ers in the fourth round in 2019 and surprisingly received a second contract from the team.
The Australian-born booter is averaging a career-best 42.7 punts in 2023, with at least 50 percent of his punts over the past two years landing inside the opposing team’s 20-yard line.
His 13,148 punting yards already ranks fifth-best in franchise history.
4th place: Bradley Pinion (2015-2018)
Prior to drafting Wisznowski, the Niners drafted Bradley Pinion in 2015. Pinion posted impressive net scores during San Francisco’s awful offense during his tenure in the Bay Area.
Pinion amassed 13,148 punting yards and averaged 43.7 yards per punt during his four-year tenure with the team before leaving as a free agent in 2019.
Pinion isn’t anything special and is associated with a weak 49ers team, but he still has a decent tenure with the team and ranks fourth on the team’s punting yards list.
3rd place: Tom Whittam (1973-1977)
Recent fan opinions aside, you might be surprised to know that the Niners have had several Pro Bowl selections at the position in their history, including special teams standout Tom Whittam in the mid-1970s.
Whittam earned Pro Bowl honors despite not leading the NFL in any category in either of his first two years with San Francisco.
His average punting yards (40.8) during his five years with the 49ers may not seem like much, but he finished his pro career with 15,494 punting yards with the 49ers.
This moves him to third on the team’s all-time list.
2. Tommy Davis (1959-1969)
There’s a pretty big gap between Whittam and the next guy on this list, San Francisco punter Tommy Davis, who played an unbelievable 11-year stint with the 49ers and made two Pro Bowls.
But what’s even more impressive is that Davis had three of the NFL’s longest punts in those respective years (71, 74 and 82 yards) and led the NFL in punting in 1962 with an average of 45.6 yards.
What sets Davis apart is that the league was less specialized during his time there and he also served as the Niners’ placekicker during that time, making 130 of 276 field goal attempts and only missing 2 of 350 extra points, earning him an honorable mention on the list of San Francisco’s best kickers.
But Davis is arguably a much better punter than he is a kicker, and his 22,833 total punting yards rank second in franchise history behind only the clear No. 1 punter the 49ers have ever had.
1st place: Andy Lee (2004-2014)
For many years, Andy Lee was arguably one of the Niners’ best weapons, which says a lot about him, but also takes into account how bad San Francisco was for the majority of his time in the red and gold.
Just as Davis is far better than the other punters on this list, Lee was also far better than Davis, leading the NFL in punts and total punting yards in 2005 and 2007 (remember, the 49ers offense was awful back then), earning three Pro Bowl nods and being named to the All-Pro 1st Team three times during his time with the 49ers.
Additionally, in 2011, even as San Francisco’s offense got back on track under then-coach Jim Harbaugh, Lee averaged 50.9 yards per punt.
Like Davis, Lee had nearly twice as many punting yards during his 49ers career, and amassed a team-high 43,468 yards over 11 years before losing his spot to Pinion.
