Jake Bailey
Punter
Solana Beach, Calif.
Jake Bailey was selected in the fifth round with the 163rd overall pick in the 2019 NFL Draft on Saturday by the New England Patriots. A punter from Solana Beach, California, Bailey is the first Cardinal selected by the Patriots since 2015.
Jake Bailey has been a weapon for us for years," Bradford M. Freeman Director of Football David Shaw said. "He has the strong leg to be a very good kickoff specialist that pins the opponent's offense back to start their drives. Jake also has the ability not only to boot long punts that change field position, but also to pin the opponent back inside their 20-yard-line, sometimes inside the 10. That is a skill that is very coveted by NFL teams and the Patriots are getting a good one."
Bailey was named All-Pac-12 three times during his career with the Cardinal and finished as Stanford's all-time leader in career punting average (43.81). His 185 punts are sixth-most in school history as are his 8,105 career punt yards. He totaled just 17 touchbacks with 51 fair catches, 76 inside the 20, and 54 punts of 50+ yards in 52 career games. Bailey also totaled 291 kickoffs for 18,428 yards (63.3 avg) and 173 touchbacks.
"Jake has an ability to directional punt," special teams coordinator Pete Alamar said. "He can put the ball into tight spaces which helps your coverage unit. He's a high ball hitter – he's not a guy that drives the ball. He has a great relationship between the distance and the hang time to allow his coverage unit to get down the field. The Patriots are also going to like him because of his kickoff ability. He takes the returner out of the game in that aspect."
Bailey totaled 86 punts for 2,996 yards (44.06 avg) in 2018, playing in all 13 games. His 68 punts were the seventh-most in school history while his 2,996 yards were the fourth-most. He had 20 punts of 50+ yards and 24 punts inside the 20. Bailey also kicked off for the Cardinal, with 60 touchbacks as a senior. He punctuated his career with a school-record 84 yard punt against Cal.
As a junior in 2017, Bailey earned All-Pac-12 honors after punting 57 times for an average of 45.5 yards. He had touchbacks on 58 of 83 kickoffs. As a sophomore in 2016, he punted 50 times for 2,176 yards with 13 punts over 50 yards and 22 inside the 20. He had 44 touchbacks on 71 kickoffs. Bailey was the Cardinal kickoff specialist as a freshman in 2015 and also punted 10 times situationally.