Kansas City Chiefs punter Matt Araiza shares story; looking to make impact early
By Calvin Silvers
It was a day for Kansas City Chiefs’ special teams on Monday, as kicker Harrison Butker signed a contract extension that makes him the NFL’s highest-paid kicker. The extension is for four years and $25.6 million, with $17.75 million guaranteed.
Kansas City Chiefs’ punter, Matt Araiza, while not signing an extension yet, is hoping to get to that point in his career after having to take a break from the game. The 24-year-old from San Diego State was called “Punt God” coming out of college, with a promising career ahead.
That journey was put on hold, and almost derailed, as Araiza was accused of rape of a 17-year-old girl, but prosecutors later decided not to press charges after it was concluded that he wasn’t at the party at the time.
That resulted in being released from the Buffalo Bills in 2022, and the goal of playing football looked dim. In fact, he battled himself whether he’d be able to see an NFL field again.
“There were times that I did and there were times that I didn’t, I honestly kept going back and forth in my mind,” Araiza said. “There were a lot of moments where I thought it was over, so I’m incredibly grateful to be here.”
The Chiefs signed Araiza after the end of last season, and currently, he’s the only punter with the Chiefs’ logo at training camp. Despite having to spend some time away from a team setting, Araiza found time to work on his skill set and believes he stands out from others in the league.
“I’ve punted with a lot of guys in the NFL, a lot of guys come to San Diego during the offseason and train,” Araiza said. “One thing I think I have over everyone is how much my punts move. I’ve caused a ton of drops and I’m looking to seeing that on Sundays.”
While having spent countless hours practicing the art form, Araiza was naturally born with a gift that some NFL coaches prefer over others, and that’s being left-footed.
“Being a lefty, the ball rotates a different way, and so especially when the ball starts moving, you know, it’ll tail at the last second,” Araiza said. “Guys who aren’t used to lefties, sometimes they’re not even close to it, like five yards away.”
There’s no better time to be a punter in the game of football than now, as Araiza described this as “The Golden Age” of punters.
Football fans alike have seen the position grow in terms of techniques and punting styles, but for the San Diego State product, he likes to keep it simple.
“To compare all of us to 20 years ago, It’s night and day. I think my strength is power and consistency, so I don’t care to get into all those fancy punts,” Araiza said. I don’t think I need them. I think if I hit a deep high ball with good direction, just do that as much as you can.”
It’s been an up-and-down ride for Araiza, who took a bad scenario and was able to turn it around for himself. Despite all that went down, he’s just excited to get back on the field.
“Yeah, rearview mirror. There was a hope at the time, but like I said, I couldn’t be happier with life right now on the field, off the field, everything’s going exactly how I want it.”
