The Kansas City Chiefs have one of the top punters in the league yet are still bringing another one to minicamp. The official Eastern Michigan website reports that P Zach Johnson has signed a free-agent contract with the Chiefs.
The Chiefs worked Johnson out back in March. They also attended at least one Eastern Michigan game this season.
He's got some pretty impressive numbers.
Johnson was on the Ray Guy Award Watch list, which goes to the top punter in the nation, in both 2006 and 2007, and was one of the semifinalists for the award in 2006. He was also a 2006 honorable mention Freshman All-American as chosen by The Sporting News.
For his career Johnson played in 42 games, earning 39 starts while averaging 40.2 yards per punt. He had an amazing 69 punts inside the 20-yard line. His 40.2 career punting average is the third-best in school history.
It's unclear if he is a rookie tryout or an undrafted free agent that has actually signed. The report said he had actually signed a UDFA deal with the Chiefs. If that's the case, that'd make 12 UDFAs.
As we've said before, the Chiefs working specialists is likely more just insurance in the instance Dustin Colquitt or Ryan Succop are out for a game (or more). I don't see them being replaced.