SANTA CLARA -- Through seven games, 49ers rookie punter Bradley Pinion ranks 20th in the league in net punting average.
And that seems to be about what 49ers special-teams coordinator Thomas McGaughey had envisioned after the team invested a fifth-round draft pick in him.
“I think Bradley is doing well,” McGaughey said. “He’s a rookie. I didn’t expect him to come in here and make the Pro Bowl his first year. But he’s going through his growing pains. He’s growing through it. He’s doing a good job of coming in and being diligent every day. He works hard at it.”
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Pinion ranks 20th with a net average of 39.9 yards. He is 27th with a gross average of 43.5 yards. Pinion’s biggest issue has been consistency.
“Some of the punts that we’ve had, we can’t have some of those punts,” McGaughey said. “He knows that, he understands it and he’s working on that. Guys are doing a good job of covering, but as far as his punts are concerned, he’s getting better every week, I think. He’s learned from his mistakes.”
After the 49ers selected Pinion, the 49ers traded long-time punter Andy Lee to the Cleveland Browns. Lee is third in the NFL in gross punting at 48.8 yards, and fifth with a net average of 43.0.