Palardy Earns AFC Praise

Like many players on the roster, punter Michael Palardy got off to a slow start in the 2021 season before really picking up his game in recent weeks.

Palardy has one of his strongest performances to day in the 20-9 victory against the New York Giants on Sunday and he now has been rewarded for that effort.

Palardy was named Wednesday morning as the AFC Special Teams Player of the Week after averaging 48.3 gross yards with a net of 44.7 yards on his six punts, three of which ended up inside the 20. The highlight was a career-high 65-yard punt in the third quarter.

It marked the first such award for Palardy, who joined the Dolphins as a free agent this offseason after he was released by the Carolina Panthers.

The last time a Dolphins punter had been named AFC Special Teams Player of the Week was in 2018 with Matt Haack, who left as an unrestricted free agent this offseason before the Dolphins signed Palardy.

Palardy had an almost equally impressive outing in Week 12 against Carolina when he averaged 40.5 yards on four punts, all of which ended up inside the 20.

It's the second time a Dolphins player has won a weekly award this season. CB Xavien Howard was named AFC Defensive Player of the Week for his performance in the Week 10 Thursday night victory against the Baltimore Ravens.