For the second time in less than a month, Buffalo Bills general manager Brandon Beane is scouring the free-agent market for a punter.
Cameron Johnston, who has punted for the Bills in each of the past three games, is going to miss time with a knee injury that occurred in the fourth quarter of their 31-19 win over the New Orleans Saints on Sunday at Highmark Stadium.
NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport was first to report Johnston’s absence and a league source confirmed the information to The News.
Saints practice squad linebacker Nephi Sewell fell into Johnston’s left leg while New Orleans sent an all-out punt block with 5:18 left in the fourth quarter and the Bills leading 28-19. Sewell was penalized for roughing the kicker, which allowed Bills quarterback Josh Allen to move the offense into field-goal range.
Listen now and subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | RSS Feed | SoundStack
Johnston strapped a brace to his left leg and returned to hold for Matt Prater’s 35-yard field goal, but the extent of the injury was evident following the game when the Australian limped to undergo x-rays. He told reporters that, structurally, the knee felt “pretty solid,” and he was scheduled to undergo further testing Monday.
The Bills may have been mulling a change before the injury because Johnston’s net average of 37.9 yards on seven punts ranks 26th in the NFL and represents a marginal upgrade over Brad Robbins, whom they cut following Week 1 come-from-behind win over the Baltimore Ravens.
It was the second week in a row that Johnston was tackled by an opposing player. Dolphins defensive tackle Zach Sieler was penalized for a similar play in Week 3, which extended a drive that ended with Allen’s 15-yard touchdown pass to Khalil Shakir that gave Bufalo a 28-21 leading the fourth quarter.
“You definitely hate to see it two weeks in a row,” said Bills long snapper Reid Ferguson. :I’ve got to do better on that play because part of my job, obviously, is to protect him, but it’s an aggressive game. Usually you don’t see it in back to back games. That’s pretty crazy. But we knew they were going to come after it at the end.”
Johnston suffered a season-ending torn ACL in Week 1 of 2024, when he got hit while punting for the Steelers against the Falcons. Pittsburgh cut Johnston at the end of training camp last month, and he was signed by the Bills to replace Robbins, who recently tried out for the Cleveland Browns.
Be the first to know
Get local news delivered to your inbox!
* I understand and agree that registration on or use of this site constitutes agreement to its user agreement and privacy policy.
Lance Lysowski
News Sports Reporter
Get email notifications on {{subject}} daily!
Your notification has been saved.
There was a problem saving your notification.
{{description}}
Email notifications are only sent once a day, and only if there are new matching items.
Followed notifications
Please log in to use this feature
Log In
Don’t have an account? Sign Up Today