The New England Patriots filled a major need on their 90-man roster Thursday when they signed punter Corliss Waitman.

The Patriots previously didn’t have a punter on their roster after releasing Jake Bailey and choosing not to retain free-agent punter Michael Palardy.

Waitman, a left-footed punter, originally was tendered as an exclusive rights free agent by the Denver Broncos this offseason. He had his tender withdrawn this week after the Broncos signed veteran punter Riley Dixon, making him a free agent.

Waitman, 27, spent a month on the Patriots’ practice squad in 2021 before being signed by the Pittsburgh Steelers. The Belgium native punted 96 times for 4,470 yards last season. Among 34 qualified punters, he was first in punts, 20th in yards per punt, 15th in net yards per attempt, seventh in punts inside the 20, 21st in lowest return percentage, 22nd in the least amount of touchbacks, second in downed punts, fourth in fair catches and ninth in average hangtime.

Waitman was better in every single metric than Bailey and Palardy. Bailey and Palardy were arguably the two worst punters in the NFL last season, however.

New England could still take a punter in the 2023 NFL Draft, but it does become less of a necessity after Thursday’s signing.

Featured image via Mitch Stringer-USA TODAY Sports