Cleveland Browns sign punter Michael Palardy
By Thomas Moore
The Cleveland Browns added punter Michael Palardy to the roster on Tuesday, who will now battle Kasey Redfern for the punting duties.
A day after trading three-time Pro Bowl punter Andy Lee to the Carolina Panthers in a deal that brought back punter Kasey Redfern, the Cleveland Browns signed punter Michael Palardy.
Apparently head coach Hue Jackson enjoyed the competition between kickers Patrick Murray and Travis Coons so much he’s decided to duplicate it at the punting position.
The deal was announced on the team’s website.
Palardy originally signed with the Oakland Raiders as an undrafted free agent in 2014 out of Tennessee. He spent part of that season on the Raiders practice squad before moving on to St. Louis, where he was in training camp with the Rams in 2015.
Related: Cleveland Browns trade punter Andy Lee to Carolina
He signed with the Carolina Panthers in April and expressed excitement about joining the defending NFC Champions.
“This is a step in the right direction for me,” Palardy told the team’s website. “I put a lot of blood, sweat and tears into this, and this is a great opportunity with a great organization fresh off a Super Bowl appearance.”
That joy was short-lived, however, as the Panthers released him in June.
Palardy then joined the Baltimore Ravens for training camp, only to be released on Aug. 3. He then signed with the Indianapolis Colts and was waived on Aug. 15, but not before reflecting on the transient nature of life on the fringe of the NFL.
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“I know at some point there may be a time where I say, ‘You know what, it’s not going to work out for me,’ ” Palardy told indystar.com. “Realistically, that time may come. I just know football’s my passion, and something I’m going to pursue until the time comes, whenever it is, that I have to hang it up.”
In college, Palardy played in 46 games as both the kicker and the punter for the Volunteers. He finished his collegiate career converting 37-of-50 field goals (74 percent) and punting 117 times for an average of 42.9 yards per punt.
Palardy, like Redfern, has never kicked in a regular season NFL game. And since they both spent time with the Panthers, they should have something to talk about between and the NFL mandated roster cutdown on Saturday.