What is the 'Peanut Punch' showing up across NFL? Why it's changing how defenses attack the football — SkimNews
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- NFL forced fumbles reached 175 through six games—the highest six-week total since 2013—as the Peanut Punch spread from a rare Charles Tillman flourish into a routine tactic; the 1.4% reception fumble rate is tied for fifth-highest since TruMedia began tracking in 2000.
- K'Lavon Chaisson punched the ball away from Christian McCaffrey on a second-quarter screen pass against Washington, and Frankie Luvu recovered it for a turnover.
- New York Jets rank second in forced fumbles with 10 through six games, nine on defense, despite a 2-4 record; Aaron Glenn says the team gives equal practice time to punch-outs and conventional rips.
- Philadelphia Eagles showed every coach and player a cut-up of each fumble Charles Tillman forced in his career and use a blueprint for attacking the ball; since Nick Sirianni took over in 2021, they rank second in forced fumbles behind Pittsburgh.
- JJ Watt demonstrated that more points of contact and a ball-and-arm harness protect the ball near the elbow; the article notes that the harness can also break wrists.
- Rhamondre Stevenson has fumbled seven times since entering the league in 2021 and says opponents increasingly focus on punching, ripping or otherwise trying to take the ball.
- Chris Horton instructs Giants returners to place the ball on the side they are running, sometimes next to the boundary, and drills them to pursue it so they learn to protect it.
Why it matters: With 175 forced fumbles through six games—the highest six-week total since 2013—ball carriers from Christian McCaffrey to Rhamondre Stevenson are seeing defenders concentrate on the ball. More points of contact, tighter possession and directional placement on returns answer the punch, while the article flags a wrist hazard in the ball-and-arm harness.
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