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LAR Los Angeles Rams · WR· #19 · also kick returner

Xavier Smith

Age
29
Height
5'9"
Weight
180 lbs
College
Florida A&M
Drafted
Not drafted
Experience
4th NFL season
Compare with another playerPunt returners leaderboard

49

Overall grade

19th of 34 punt returners

Typical

about average; 50 is average

Grades updated Rechecked every few hours on game days

The read

Xavier grades about average among punt returners so far, with no number far from the middle.

Lately he is playing better. EPA per punt fielded is +0.17 over the last 2 games (3 punts), against −0.05 before that. A few plays could easily explain this. Worth watching, not worth believing yet.

Written from his numbers, not from film. 3 games are behind the season figures.

How he stacks up

Every graded stat at a glance, against all the punt returners in the league.

  • EPA per punt fielded+0.0219th of 34small sample
  • Yards per return9.9 yds14th of 24small sample

Left is the worst at his job, right is the best, and the line down the middle is average. The bubble is his percentile: 90 means better than nine in ten qualifying punt returners. Faded bars are still small samples.

How he has progressed

Where he has ranked among punt returners after each week, and every game behind it.

WorstMiddleBestrecent12345Week 2: 29th percentileWeek 3: 34th percentile34th

Season rank holding near the 34th percentile since Wk 2.

The line is his season-to-date rank among players at his position after each week, from 100 (the best) to 0 (the worst). It rises when he passes other players, not when he has one big game. Early weeks are noisier because fewer plays are behind them. The shaded weeks are the recent stretch.

EPA per punt fielded game by game
WeekOpponentThat gamepuntsSeason rank after
1vs SF+0.831–
2vs NYG−0.22529th pct
3vs DEN+0.17334th pct

One game is a small sample: a single stat over 3 punts can swing on a handful of plays. Shaded rows are the recent stretch.

The numbers, in context

Each one against every punt returner with at least 5 punts fielded. Right on the strip is better.

EPA per punt fielded

Typical

+0.02

19th of 34 punt returners · bottom 48%

Expected points added: how many points the play added to (or took from) the offense's scoring chances, given the down, the distance and the field position. From his team's side, for every punt he fields, fair catches included.

The box score: Return average ignores fair catches and the starting field position.

Does it show up in winning? Across 54 games league-wide, a good or bad game on EPA per punt fielded from a punt returner has not lined up much with his team winning (61% wins in the best third, 53% in the worst).

Last 2 games: +0.17 (3) vs −0.05 before+9.7grade points upWithin the noise

Small sample: could move a lot · 9 punts · true level likely −0.41 to +0.46

Yards per return

Typical

9.9 yds

14th of 24 punt returners · bottom 46%

Average yards when he returns the punt (fair catches excluded).

The box score: This is the box score number.

Last 2 games: 13.0 yds (2) vs 8.6 yds before

Small sample: could move a lot · 7 returns · true level likely 4.9 yds to 14.8 yds

How he plays

Tendencies: how his game differs from the punt returners around him. These are not better or worse, only different, and often say as much about the offense or defense he plays in as about him.

Fair catch rate

Style

22%

Returns almost everything, and more so than almost any of the punt returners. A typical one is 41%.

How often he fair catches instead of returning, a choice about risk.

Small sample: could move a lot · 9 punts

Game by game

Every game this season: how it ended for his team, how much he played, his box score, and the advanced numbers from that one game. One game is a small sample, so read the right-hand columns as a snapshot, not his level.

Xavier Smith game by game
GameResultFieldedYdsEPA/puntYds/return
Wk 1 vs SFL 7–27111+0.8311.0 yds
Wk 2 vs NYGW 28–6532−0.228.0 yds
Wk 3 vs DENL 26–30326+0.1713.0 yds

The box score

The traditional totals, with where each ranks among punt returners. A total rewards volume, which is why the advanced numbers above matter.

Xavier Smith box score totals
StatTotalRank
Punts fielded918th of 34
Return yards6913th of 34

Players with a similar profile

The punt returners whose grades are closest to his across the same stats. Similar means similar numbers, not the same style of play.

As a kick returner

Points added and yards gained on kickoff returns.

The read

Xavier grades well below average among kick returners so far, with no number far from the middle.

Lately he is playing better. EPA per return is −0.03 over the last 2 games (4 returns), against −0.29 before that. A few plays could easily explain this. Worth watching, not worth believing yet.

Written from his numbers, not from film. 3 games are behind the season figures.

How he stacks up

Every graded stat at a glance, against all the kick returners in the league.

  • EPA per return−0.1450th of 53small sample
  • Yards per return20.6 yds53rd of 53small sample

Left is the worst at his job, right is the best, and the line down the middle is average. The bubble is his percentile: 90 means better than nine in ten qualifying kick returners. Faded bars are still small samples.

How he has progressed

Where he has ranked among kick returners after each week, and every game behind it.

WorstMiddleBestrecent12345Week 2: 0th percentileWeek 3: 6th percentile6th

Season rank holding near the 6th percentile since Wk 2.

The line is his season-to-date rank among players at his position after each week, from 100 (the best) to 0 (the worst). It rises when he passes other players, not when he has one big game. Early weeks are noisier because fewer plays are behind them. The shaded weeks are the recent stretch.

EPA per return game by game
WeekOpponentThat gamereturnsSeason rank after
1vs SF−0.001–
2vs NYG−0.4320th pct
3vs DEN−0.0346th pct

One game is a small sample: a single stat over 2 returns can swing on a handful of plays. Shaded rows are the recent stretch.

The numbers, in context

Each one against every kick returner with at least 5 returns. Right on the strip is better.

EPA per return

Among the weakest

−0.14

50th of 53 kick returners · bottom 8%

Expected points added: how many points the play added to (or took from) the offense's scoring chances, given the down, the distance and the field position. From his team's side, for each kickoff he returns.

The box score: Return average ignores the starting field position the team would have had anyway.

Does it show up in winning? Across 82 games league-wide, teams won 54% of the time when their kick returner was in the best third on EPA per return, and 30% when he was in the worst third.

Last 2 games: −0.03 (4) vs −0.29 before+12.3grade points upWithin the noise

Small sample: could move a lot · 7 returns · true level likely −0.64 to +0.36

Yards per return

Among the weakest

20.6 yds

53rd of 53 kick returners · bottom 2%

Average yards per kickoff return.

The box score: This is the box score number.

Does it show up in winning? Across 82 games league-wide, teams won 63% of the time when their kick returner was in the best third on yards per return, and 30% when he was in the worst third.

Last 2 games: 22.5 yds (4) vs 18.0 yds before+12.2grade points upWithin the noise

Small sample: could move a lot · 7 returns · true level likely 15.0 yds to 26.2 yds

Game by game

Every game this season: how it ended for his team, how much he played, his box score, and the advanced numbers from that one game. One game is a small sample, so read the right-hand columns as a snapshot, not his level.

Xavier Smith game by game
GameResultRetYdsEPA/returnYds/return
Wk 1 vs SFL 7–27125−0.0025.0 yds
Wk 2 vs NYGW 28–6229−0.4314.5 yds
Wk 3 vs DENL 26–30490−0.0322.5 yds

The box score

The traditional totals, with where each ranks among kick returners. A total rewards volume, which is why the advanced numbers above matter.

Xavier Smith box score totals
StatTotalRank
Returns730th of 53
Return yards14443rd of 53

Players with a similar profile

The kick returners whose grades are closest to his across the same stats. Similar means similar numbers, not the same style of play.

Ranks are among players at the same job who have enough plays to be graded. Grades and rankings come from play-by-play, charting and snap-count data, so they cannot see blocking, route running or assignments. See how the grades work.

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Data: nflverse play-by-play, CC BY 4.0. Also FTN charting, Pro Football Reference advanced stats, snap counts and injury reports, all through nflverse. Calculations and charts by Raiders Rundown.

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