Longtime Viking Leaves Out of Nowhere
For months, it seemed like a no-brainer that punter Ryan Wright would return to the Minnesota Vikings, but that theory was a myth. Out of nowhere, Wright departed the franchise on Monday, choosing the New Orleans Saints as his next employer.
The move came fast, and now the Vikings have a special teams opening.
“Punter news” rarely registers on the Richter scale, but this one is a bit odd, as kicker Will Reichard loses his holder.
Minnesota Must Rework the Punter Plan Quickly
Say goodbye to the punter,
Wright to the Saints
Wright lasted four seasons in Minnesota, signed as a rookie at the top of the Kevin O’Connell era. That’s a wrap for his career as a Viking.
ESPN’s Adam Schefter tweeted Monday, amid a total free agency bonanza, “Another big punter deal: Former Vikings punter Ryan Wright is signing a four-year, $14 million deal that includes $8 million guaranteed with the Saints, per source.”
In seventeen games last year, Wright punted 65 times for 3,184 total yards, averaging a career-high 49.0 yards per punt, which ranked fourth in the league. Minnesota’s net average was 44.5 yards per punt. Wright’s longest punt traveled 77 yards..
Beyond distance, Wright also demonstrated precision, pinning 25 punts inside the opponent’s 20-yard line. Despite the length of his kicks, only three resulted in touchbacks, a testament to his accuracy.
In short, Wright punted magnificently in 2022 as a rookie, struggled in 2023 and 2024, and regained his top-tier form in 2025. It’s not the best time to lose him.
Louisiana Sports‘ Ross Jackson noted on the Wright signing, “There’s a new punter in town as the New Orleans Saints finally invest in the position after years of trying to find diamonds through undrafted free agency. Since Thomas Morstead’s departure following the 2020 season, the Saints have had a carousel at the position.”
“Over the five years since the split, New Orleans has had four starting punters and endless training camp competition at the position. Looking at the numbers, Wright is in a completely different class of punter than that which the Saints have been dealing with over recent years.”
Vikings Suddenly Need a Punter
All of a sudden, the Vikings need a punter. Free agency might provide a veteran like Tommy Townsend, Matt Araiza, or Bradley Pinion, to name a few. Otherwise, the draft will feature men like this, or more realistically, undrafted free agency after the draft:
- Ryan Eckley — Michigan State
- Tommy Doman — Florida
- Jack Stonehouse — Syracuse
- Brett Thorson — Georgia
- Tyler White — Texas A&M
- Tyler Perkins — Iowa State
- Ross James — Oregon
An undrafted rookie punter, James Burnip, from 2025, is also available, and he held kicks for Reichard at Alabama.
The Holding Angle
The bigger news, indeed, may be the holding aspect. Reichard turned into the NFL’s best kicker in 2025, and Vikings fans cherished that development because the franchise is so damn snakebitten by nefarious kicking shenanigans. Wright’s holding represented stability, and at least for a while, Minnesota is back to square one at the holder position.
It certainly isn’t the end of the world, but the Vikings must identify a new holder and get the man working with Reichard in Eagan as soon as May or June.
Minnesota has a good thing going in Reichard-Wright on field goals and extra points. That’s over.
Vikings to See Him in 2026
Interestingly, fans will see Wright in 2026 — as an opponent. Minnesota will take on New Orleans at the Caesars Superdome or perhaps Paris if the club is tapped on the shoulder again for international duty.
Back in December, Wright said about his background, speaking to VikingsTerritory: “I think after my junior season, I got that ranking as a quarterback from 247 Sports. And we actually got in touch with them, because I was also, or I should be ranked as a punter, as well. But they weren’t doing it like that, they were only doing it, ‘okay, you can either be a quarterback or a punter.”
“Or we can put you in the athlete category.’ But that doesn’t really work, either. So I think after my junior season I decided I just wanted to be a punter on there so I could get recruited by colleges as a punter and kind of gave up that quarterback dream pretty early. I still did it my senior year, but I definitely focused a little bit more on punting.”
Wright now takes that story to New Orleans.
Finally, Vikings fans hate the Saints, harboring a longstanding grudge since the BountyGate scandal in 2009. Wright is now the enemy.
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