Pat McAfee's Pro Bowl-Worthy Season Leads the Colts' Revamped Special Teams

For the last two seasons, Indianapolis Colts punter Pat McAfee has put together Pro Bowl-worthy years.

In 2012, he was passed over by the Kansas City Chiefs' Dustin Colquitt, but the year McAfee had was more than deserving. In 2013, McAfee was second in the AFC in punt grade from Pro Football Focus, behind only Shane Lechler of the Houston Texans, and added a positive-21.6 grade on kickoffs, something Lechler did not handle.

Now, six games into the 2014 season, McAfee has not just continued his strong play, he's improved upon it. McAfee's putting together a season for the record books in Indianapolis, putting together flawless performances as a punter and kickoff specialist to lead the Colts' best special teams unit in over 15 years. 

Year	DVOA	Rank
1996	6.0%	3
1997-2013 (average)	-2.4%	22.6
2014	3.7%	7

The Colts have been riding high over the last four games, with a high-flying, explosive offense and a defense that, while inconsistent, has made plays when it needed to. 

But the special teams unit's success over that time period has been just as impressive, if not more, and it starts with McAfee. 

After signing a five-year, $14.5 million contract this offseason, McAfee has played up to the hype, and then some. 

It's hard to put into words just how impactful McAfee has been, so maybe a number will help: 44.8. That's the amount of net yards per punt that McAFee has averaged over six games, which leads the league. 

Not only does that lead the league for 2014, but it would be the highest net punting average since it began being tracked in 1976, according to The Football Database. 

How is he doing it? Not through raw power, but pinpoint accuracy and a bit of a magic touch. 

McAfee has one heck of a leg, affectionately known as the "Boomstick," but in the last few years he's become a master at corralling his leg and mastering "touch" punts as well. This season has been a revelation for McAfee's ability to pin teams deep, especially in recent weeks. 

Since Week 3, McAfee has pinned teams inside the 20 on 10 of his 13 punts, an astounding rate. For the season he has 13 punts inside the 20 compared to just one touchback, the best such ratio in the league for punters with at least 10 punts inside the 20. 

During the first two weeks, McAfee's punts weren't pinning inside the 20 at quite the same rate as they have for the rest of the season (just three times in eight punts), but that's due to circumstance more than McAfee's failings. The Colts weren't moving the ball quite as well in the first two weeks, and the average line of scrimmage on McAfee's eight punts was the Colts' 23-yard line. 

Still, McAfee was killing it, averaging 52.5 yards per punt and a blistering 46.4 net yards per punt. He was completely flipping field position, as the opponent started the next drive on their own 30, on average. 

No, outside of one slightly out-of-the-ordinary shanked punt against the Philadelphia Eagles in Week 2, McAfee has been nothing short of flawless when punting. 

But it's not just punting, McAfee also handles kickoff duties for Indianapolis, which have been phenomenal through six weeks. Thirty-three of McAfee's 37 kickoffs have been touchbacks, which leads the league (next is Justin Tucker, with 28). But it's not just the raw totals: McAfee's 10.8 percent return rate on kickoffs is also league-leading. 

In the four kickoffs that opponents have decided to return, the farthest they've been returned to is the 21, and the average is the 18. If he's not forcing touchbacks, McAfee is forcing kick returners to take the ball out from so far back in the end zone that the Colts' kickoff coverage units have little trouble corralling them. 

Overall, opposing teams have an average drive start of their own 23.3-yard line against the Colts, the third-best mark in the league. While that metric is influenced by a host of things, including turnovers by the offense, it's a huge indication of how well the special teams unit has been playing, and it's an incredibly helpful boost for the defense. The defense looks a lot better when teams are forced to drive 80 yards to reach the end zone on the vast majority of possessions. 

All this and we haven't even talked about the Colts' onside kicks, which McAfee and Co. have executed with aplomb.

McAfee and the Colts are 3-for-3 on onside kicks so far this season, which joins four other kickers for the most successful onside kicks in a single season since 2000 (Craig Hentrich, TEN, 2004; Joe Nedney, SF, 2006; Neil Rackers, ARI, 2007; Matt Bosher, ATL, 2013), according to STATS LLC (via Sporting Charts). Rackers was the only other kicker to do so without a single failure. 

To get an extra possession for the offense is invaluable, and the Colts have taken advantage. Against Tennessee and Houston in the last three weeks, the Colts have kicked onside kicks directly after the first score of the game, then scored a touchdown on the subsequent drive to take a quick two-possession lead. 

Of course, it's not all McAfee. Jack Doyle and Griff Whalen executed the onside kick perfectly against the Titans, and Whalen's been a solid punt returner for most of 2014. 

Adam Vinatieri is one of three kickers with at least 10 attempts who have yet to miss a field goal, giving the Colts an always-reliable option when kicking field goals. 

The coverage teams, both on punts and kickoffs, have been lights-out, led by guys like Loucheiz Purifoy, Colt Anderson and Dan Herron. The Colts lead the league in return yards allowed, allowing just 134 total return yards. The next closest team is Seattle with 207. 

Head coach Chuck Pagano and special teams coordinator Tom McMahon have created a well-rounded special teams unit, and one that is lethal without the presence of an electrifying returner (although the team did just work out Trindon Holliday). It, like the sport as a whole, is a team effort, no one person can make it go alone. 

But make no mistake, McAfee—with his golf swing, off-field charm and everything else that comes with it—is the engine, the lifeblood of the unit. So far in 2014, it's paying big dividends for Indianapolis. 

All statistics and snap counts come from Pro Football Focus (subscription required) and Pro Football Reference unless otherwise noted. All training camp observations were obtained firsthand by the reporter unless otherwise noted.

Kyle is an NFL and Indianapolis Colts analyst for Bleacher Report and the editor-in-chief of Colts Authority. Follow Kyle on Twitter for more stats, analysis and general NFL analysis.