Dolphins release punter Michael Turk, son of former Miami punter Matt Turk
It appears at least one competition in south Florida has come to an end, and it will see the son of a former Dolphin head out of town. The Miami Dolphins announced Wednesday evening that they have released punter Michael Turk. The team also announced that they waived safety Bennett Williams with an injury designation. […]
It appears at least one competition in south Florida has come to an end, and it will see the son of a former Dolphin head out of town.
The Miami Dolphins announced Wednesday evening that they have released punter Michael Turk. The team also announced that they waived safety Bennett Williams with an injury designation.
Turk was signed by the Dolphins shortly after the draft as an undrafted free agent out of Oklahoma. He is the son of former Dolphins punter Matt Turk, who kicked for Miami from 2000-2001 and 2003-2004 during his 17-year NFL career.
A first team All-Big 12 punter in 2021-2022, it was thought Turk might challenge veteran Jake Bailey for the starting job. It did not take long for that to prove not to be the case. As such, unless the team adds some additional competition later in camp, Bailey will be booming kicks for the Dolphins in 2023.
Bailey was a first-team All-Pro in 2020 for the New England Patriots, sporting an average of 48.7 yards per punt with a net punting average of 45.6. However, last season Bailey's net punting average dropped to a dreadful 35.1 before he was placed on injured reserve with a back injury. Bailey seemed to strangely blame the subpar performance on team workouts, particularly from squatting. He was released in March 2023 and signed with the Dolphins days later.
Regardless of the reason, the Dolphins seem to Bailey can bounce back given the move today. If Bailey has recovered from his back injury and is returning to form when he was booming kicks, then Miami will be set in one important area of its special teams unit.
Patriots cut Jake Bailey one year after massive investment
The Patriots’ had one of the worst punting units in the NFL last season.
Featured image via Trevor Ruszkowski-USA TODAY Sports
