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Corliss Waitman

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Corliss Waitman
No. 8 – Pittsburgh Steelers
Position:Punter
Personal information
Born: (1995-07-21) 21 July 1995 (age 29)[1]
Ghent, Belgium[1]
Height:6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)
Weight:210 lb (95 kg)
Career information
High school:Milton (Milton, Florida, U.S.)
College:South Alabama (2014–2018)
CFL draft:2022G / round: 3 / pick: 20
Undrafted:2020
Career history
 * Offseason and/or practice squad member only
Roster status:Active
Career highlights and awards
Career NFL statistics as of Week 16, 2024
Punts:159
Punting yards:7,459
Average punt:46.9
Longest punt:71
Inside 20:56
Stats at Pro Football Reference Edit this at Wikidata

Corliss Leendert Waitman (born 21 July 1995) is a Belgian-American professional football punter for the Pittsburgh Steelers of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the South Alabama Jaguars.

Early life

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Waitman's mother's family is from Suriname.[2] His father, José Waitman, was a professional basketball player, and was playing in Belgium when Corliss was born. The family moved to the Netherlands, where Corliss spent his childhood. When he was 15, he moved to the United States to join his father. Waitman switched from playing soccer to football in high school.[3]

Waitman is fluent in Dutch and English.[4]

College career

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Waitman played college football at the University of South Alabama from 2014 to 2018. In February 2019, he transferred to Mississippi State University.[5] However, the NCAA denied Waitman an extra year of eligibility, and he did not play college football in 2019.[6][7]

Statistics

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Year Team GP Punting
Pnt Yds Y/P Lng Blck
2014 South Alabama 0 Did not play
2015 South Alabama 3 4 160 40.0 49 0
2016 South Alabama 13 17 621 36.5 53 0
2017 South Alabama 12 70 3,167 45.2 66 0
2018 South Alabama 12 67 2,792 41.7 58 0
Career 40 158 6,740 42.7 66 0

Professional career

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Pre-draft measurables
Height Weight
6 ft 1+5⁄8 in
(1.87 m) 		213 lb
(97 kg)
Values from Pro Day[8]

Pittsburgh Steelers (first stint)

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Waitman was signed by the Pittsburgh Steelers as an undrafted free agent on 28 April 2020. He was waived on 5 September 2020 and re-signed to the practice squad. He signed a reserve/future contract on 14 January 2021. He was waived on 3 May 2021.

Las Vegas Raiders

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On 26 July 2021, Waitman was signed by the Las Vegas Raiders. He was waived on 23 August 2021.

New England Patriots (first stint)

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On 23 November 2021, Waitman was signed to the New England Patriots practice squad.[9]

Pittsburgh Steelers (second stint)

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Waitman was signed by the Steelers off the Patriots practice squad on 25 December 2021, when Steelers punter Pressley Harvin III took bereavement leave.[10] He made his NFL debut in the team's week 16 loss against the Kansas City Chiefs the following day. He was waived on 15 January 2022.[11]

Denver Broncos

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On 17 January 2022, Waitman was claimed off waivers by the Denver Broncos.[12]

Waitman was also drafted by the Edmonton Elks in the third round (20th overall) of the 2022 CFL Global Draft.[13]

Waitman was named the starting punter for the Broncos on 29 August 2022, after veteran punter Sam Martin was released.[14] In Week 3, Waitman punted 10 times, six of them inside the 20-yard line, in an 11–10 win over the San Francisco 49ers, earning American Football Conference Special Teams Player of the Week.[15]

New England Patriots (second stint)

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On 23 March 2023, Waitman signed a contract with the Patriots, following the Patriots releasing Jake Bailey.[16][17][18] On 28 August 2023, the Patriots released Waitman and was re-signed to the practice squad.[19][20] Waitman was released on 4 October 2023.[21]

Chicago Bears

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On 9 January 2024, Waitman signed a reserve/futures contract with the Chicago Bears.[22] He was waived on August 27.[23]

Pittsburgh Steelers (third stint)

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On September 9, 2024, Waitman again signed with the Steelers following a season-ending injury to Cameron Johnston.[24]

NFL career statistics

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Legend
NFL record
Led the league
Bold Career high
Year Team GP Punting
Pnt Yds Y/P Lng Blck
2021 PIT 2 7 365 52.1 63 0
2022 DEN 17 96 4,470 46.6 59 0
2024 PIT 12 46 2,162 47.0 71 0
Career 31 149 6,997 47.0 71 0

References

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  1. ^ a b "Corliss Waitman – Football". South Alabama Jaguars Athletics. Retrieved 28 January 2023.
  2. ^ Batko, Brian (26 August 2020). "'This guy is in the NFL?': Surinamese Steelers rookie hopes to be". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Retrieved 5 October 2024.
  3. ^ Damien, Levi (26 July 2021). "Raiders sign punter Corliss Waitman with unique backstory". Raiders Wire. USA Today. Retrieved 5 October 2024.
  4. ^ Stephenson, Creg (18 October 2017). "South Alabama's Corliss Waitman developing into one of country's top punters". AL.com. Retrieved 5 October 2024.
  5. ^ Stephenson, Creg (6 February 2019). "Former South Alabama punter Corliss Waitman signs with Mississippi State". AL.com. Retrieved 5 October 2024.
  6. ^ Nissim, Steve (30 April 2020). "Persistence lands Milton's Corliss Waitman an NFL opportunity". WEAR.
  7. ^ Olson, Andrew (3 August 2019). "NCAA denies Mississippi State grad transfer's 6th year of eligibility waiver". Saturday Down South. Retrieved 5 October 2024.
  8. ^ "2020 NFL Draft Scout Corliss Waitman College Football Profile". DraftScout.com. Retrieved 4 June 2023.
  9. ^ "Patriots sign punter Corliss Waitman to the practice squad". Patriots.com. 23 November 2021. Retrieved 28 January 2023.
  10. ^ "USA's Corliss Waitman set for NFL debut on Sunday". al.com. 26 December 2021. Archived from the original on 26 December 2021. Retrieved 26 December 2021.
  11. ^ Varley, Teresa (15 January 2022). "Steelers activate Smith-Schuster". Steelers.com. Archived from the original on 24 January 2022. Retrieved 15 January 2022.
  12. ^ Williams, Charean (17 January 2022). "Broncos claim Corliss Waitman off waivers". Pro Football Talk. NBC Sports. Retrieved 28 January 2023.
  13. ^ "Kingsley Jonathan leads the Way in Global Draft". CFL.ca. 3 May 2022. Retrieved 28 January 2023.
  14. ^ "Broncos cut punter Sam Martin after he refuses pay cut". NBC Sports. 29 August 2022. Retrieved 29 August 2022.
  15. ^ Gordon, Grant (28 September 2022). "Jaguars QB Trevor Lawrence, Falcons RB Cordarrelle Patterson lead Players of the Week". NFL.com.
  16. ^ "Patriots Re-Sign DL Daniel Ekuale and Sign P Corliss Waitman". patriots.com. 23 March 2023. Retrieved 23 March 2023.
  17. ^ Yang, Nicole (23 March 2023). "Patriots sign left-footed punter Corliss Waitman - The Boston Globe". BostonGlobe.com. Retrieved 24 March 2023.
  18. ^ "New Dolphins punter Jake Bailey addresses Patriots' suspension and contract dispute". The Palm Beach Post. Retrieved 24 March 2023.
  19. ^ "Patriots Release QB Trace McSorley and P Corliss Waitman". Patriots.com. 28 August 2023.
  20. ^ "Patriots Practice Squad Headlined by QBs Zappe, Malik". SI.com. 30 August 2023. Retrieved 30 August 2023.
  21. ^ "Patriots Sign DL Trysten Hill to the Practice Squad; Release P Corliss Waitman from the Practice Squad". Patriots.com. 4 October 2023. Retrieved 4 October 2023.
  22. ^ Medina, Luis (9 January 2024). "Punter Corliss Waitman Signs with the Bears". Bleacher Nation. Retrieved 10 January 2024.
  23. ^ Mayer, Larry (27 August 2024). "Roster Moves: Bears reach 53-man roster limit". ChicagoBears.com.
  24. ^ Varley, Teresa (9 September 2024). "Steelers sign Waitman". Steelers.com. Retrieved 5 October 2024.
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