Joe Rowdis ’25
Staff Writer
Completing his 4th season on the Detroit Lions, wide receiver and punt returner Kalif Raymond had a 2024 season to remember. The beloved Holy Cross alumnus played a key role in the Lions’ success during the regular season and Divisional Round playoff game. Considering the incredible talent surrounding Raymond both offensively and defensively, he was still able to be named to the 2024 All-Pro second team as a punt returner, which Raymond also accomplished in 2022 with Detroit. This season, though, was more rewarding for Raymond, so let’s take a deeper dive into why he is rightly deserving of this accolade.
Despite missing five games, Raymond led the NFL in punt return yards, totaling 413 yards in 2024. There were many brilliant punt returns that translated to Raymond averaging a career-high of 13.8 yards per punt return this season, but none were as explosive as the unforgettable return to the house against the Tennessee Titans in Week 8. With the Lions ahead 35-14 in the early part of the 3rd quarter, the Titans punted the ball on 4th & 1, and what do you know, Raymond catches the ball, zig-zags his way through tacklers, and does not look back as he flies into the endzone 90 yards later. You could feel the energy and electricity in Detroit watching Raymond return the third-longest punt return touchdown of 2024, in what could arguably have been the best play by Raymond in 2024 (and maybe of his career too). This game was monumental for Raymond because not only did he return the longest punt of his career for a touchdown (his second punt return touchdown), but he also caught a 7-yard touchdown, becoming the first player in NFL history to return a punt for a touchdown and catch a touchdown pass in the same game. Not to mention that his 190 total punt return yards over 5 returns was the highest average for a game with at least 5 punt returns since the 1970 merger. All in all, after this incredible Week 8 performance by Raymond, he was named the NFC Special Teams Player of the Week, which is definitely something to be proud of as he and the Lions cruised into their 6th win of the season due to a dominant showing over the Titans by a score of 52-14. Week 8 was by far the best week of the season for Raymond.
In comparison to being named to the All-Pro second team as a punt returner in 2022, 2024 was a better season for Raymond because he showcased an improvement in certain statistics as a punt returner in 2024. He had 10 more punt returns (20 to 30), 149 more punt return yards (264 to 413), a higher punt return average (13.2 to 13.8), and 43 more yards in the longest punt return of the season (47 to 90). Aside from losing in the NFC Divisional Round in 2024 to the Washington Commanders, Raymond at least made some plays during this high-stakes game, catching 3 passes totaling 37 yards, with his longest being 15 yards. It is truly remarkable how Raymond is getting better as an overall player each year, especially on a Detroit Lions team that has found its identity and culture over the past few seasons under head coach Dan Campbell. After an amazing 2024 season, there is great optimism that Raymond will become a Pro Bowler for the first time, and hopefully, Raymond will continue to provide more historic performances throughout the rest of his career, most importantly making us at Holy Cross proud of his NFL endeavors.
Featured image courtesy of Google Images
Copy Edited by Charlotte Collins ’26
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