Chargers 90-in-90: P JK Scott

JK Scott played an integral part in improving the Chargers’ special teams unit as a whole in his first year with the team.

JK Scott is a native of Denver, Colorado where he attended nearby Mullen High School. After earning numerous college offers as one of the nation’s top punting prospects, Scott settled on the Crimson Tide of Alabama.

It took little time for the former top recruit to win the starting punter job for the Tide and he rewarded his team by immediately becoming one of the best punters in the country as a freshman. By the end of his first collegiate season, Scott was named a First-Team All-American by Sporting News, ESPN, and USA Today. Amongst his 55 punts that season, he dropped 31 inside the 20-yard line while leading the country with an average of 48.0 yards per punt. He would also finish the year as a finalist for the Ray Guy Award, given to the nation’s top punter.

Scott would continue to perform at the top of his position over his final three seasons with the Crimson Tide, culminating in a Second-Team All-American honor and his second National Championship as a senior in 2017. Scott would end up graduating from Alabama as the holder of numerous program punting records, including career punt yards (11,074), attempts (243), and career punting average (45.6).

Scott would end up being drafted by the Packers in the fifth round of the 2018 NFL draft with the 172nd overall pick. He’d spend his first three seasons in Green Bay, posting top marks of punting average (45.5) in 2020 and punts down inside the 20 (29) in 2019. However, the Packers would release Scott as part of their final roster cuts ahead of the 2021 season following their trade for punter Corey Bojorquez.

The 2021 season would be spent mainly without a team for Scott who wouldn’t sign with another squad until the Jaguars came calling in December. After that incredibly short stint in Jacksonville, the Chargers would sign Scott just a few months later in March of 2022.

In his first season with the Bolts, Scott punted 73 times with an average of 43.6 to go with 28 punts downed inside the 20-yard line.

Basic Info

Height: 6’6
Weight: 208
College: Alabama
Experience: 5
Years with team: 1

Contract Status

“JK Scott signed a 2 year, $4,000,000 contract with the Los Angeles Chargers, including a $820,000 signing bonus, $820,000 guaranteed, and an average annual salary of $2,000,000. In 2023, Scott will earn a base salary of $1,080,000 and a signing bonus of $820,000, while carrying a cap hit of $1,490,000 and a dead cap value of $820,000.” – Spotrac.com

The Good

Scott recorded his highest net yards per average (41.1) during his first season in Los Angeles while also posting the second-most downed punts inside the 20 (28) of his career and the second-lowest amount of return yards (66) in a season.

The Bad

Scott could always improve on his average yards per punt clip but that can be said just about every other punter in the league at the end of the day.

Odds of making the roster/What to expect in 2023?

Scott will be the Chargers’ punter during the 2023 season. The team did not bring in any competition during training camp which is a refreshing change of pace when you consider how often this club had battles for the spot over the past six to seven seasons.