AJ Cole (American football)

Alfred James Cole III is an American professional football punter for the Las Vegas Raiders of the National Football League. He played college football for the NC State Wolfpack.
Cole has the most yards per punt in NFL history.

Early life

Cole grew up in College Park, Georgia and attended Woodward Academy, where he played football, basketball, and soccer. As a senior, Cole was named All-Metro Area by The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

College career

Cole was a four year starter at punter for the NC State Wolfpack. He finished his collegiate career with 9,288 punting yards and averaged 42.2 yards per punt. He was a finalist for the Wuerffel Trophy as a junior and a semifinalist for the award as a senior. In 2017, Cole was awarded Honorable Mention All-American honors by GPR Analytics.

Professional career

Oakland/Las Vegas Raiders

2019 season

Cole was signed as an undrafted free agent by the Oakland Raiders on May 6, 2019, after participating in a rookie mini camp with the team. He beat out incumbent punter Johnny Townsend in training camp to make the Raiders' 53-man roster.
Cole made his NFL debut on September 9, 2019, against the Denver Broncos, punting three times for 134 yards. Cole finished his rookie season with 67 punts for 3,081 yards.

2020 season

In the 2020 season, Cole punted 44 times for an average of 44.1 yards.

2021 season

On December 9, 2021, Cole signed a four-year, $12.4 million contract extension with the Raiders. On December 20, 2021, Cole was named to the 2022 Pro Bowl. Cole led the league among qualified punters in yards per punt in 2021, averaging 50.03 yards per punt. Cole received first-team All-Pro distinction in 2021.

2022 season

At the start of the season, Cole was named, for the first time in his career, one of the team captains. On the 2022 season, Cole had 59 punts for 2,884 net yards for a 48.88 average. On January 30, 2023, Cole was named to his second Pro Bowl, replacing Tommy Townsend.

2023 season

In Week 9 of the 2023 season against the New York Giants in a 30–6 Raiders' victory, Cole punted five times and totaled 318 yards on those punts, setting a then-NFL record for gross punt average in a game, with 63.6 yards. His record held until it was broken by Cincinnati Bengals rookie punter Ryan Rehkow, who averaged 64.5 yards on four punts, in Week 1 of the 2024 season. Cole finished the 2023 season with 75 punts for 3,783 yards for a 50.4 yard average.

2024 season

In Week 12 of the 2024 season against the Denver Broncos, Cole threw a 34-yard reception to Divine Deablo in a fake punt. Cole was the first Raiders punter to complete a pass since 2012, and the 34-yard completion was the longest by a punter in the NFL since 2017

2025 season

On May 26, 2025, Cole signed a four-year, $15.8 million contract extension with the Raiders, making him the NFL's highest-paid punter. On October 5, 2025, Cole got his punt blocked by Segun Olubi.