GREEN BAY – There aren't many NFL players who can outrun Bo Melton. It's been his signature trait since entering the league in 2022.
That prodigious 4.3 speed made Melton an ideal candidate to serve as a flyer for Daniel Whelan and the Packers' punt unit, one of two perimeter players responsible for applying the initial pressure on the opposing team's returner.
And what a responsibility that turned out to be.
Once Melton started working with Whelan a couple years ago, he noticed an interesting pattern developing. He kept running, the punts kept going and punt returners kept backing up.
"He boots that ball so far," said Melton with a laugh. "Daniel is that guy. He has that boot. Just blessed to be on a team where he can punt that thing and give his guys time to get down there."
Whelan's combination of natural talent, pure power and an insatiable desire to take his game to another level has positioned him as one of the NFL's top up-and-coming punters.
It also catapulted the 6-foot-5, 219-pound punter to the top of the team's record book after Whelan shattered the Packers' single-season records for both gross (51.7 yards per punt) and net (43.9) punting average.
His gross average ranked No. 1 in the NFL and marked the first time a Green Bay punter has led the league in the category since the 1970 NFL-AFL merger. It was also the third-best single-season mark by a punter with at least 40 punts in NFL history.
Whelan isn't one to publicly bask in the glory of his own success. Even after notching the most decorated season ever by a Packers punter, he'd rather point the credit to Melton or the coverage team than acknowledge his vital part of the process.
"Love that. That's good for the punt team," said Whelan after the regular season. "It's all them."
It does have plenty to do with Whelan, too. After sifting through six punters over seven years, Green Bay brought in the Irish-born Whelan after a standout 2023 season with the XFL's D.C. Defenders.
Later that summer, Whelan usurped veteran Pat O'Donnell for the Packers' punting job and has only continued to get better during each of his three seasons in Green Bay.
The NFL is starting to take notice. Whelan was the No. 1-graded punter this season, according to Pro Football Focus, and received three first-team votes in AP All-Pro balloting. Green Bay has never had a punter make the All-Pro team.
"He's a great dude, great in the locker room, but he's a real weapon out on the field in terms of being able to flip the field," Head Coach Matt LaFleur said. "I feel like anytime we've gotten in some of those critical moments where we really need a great kick, he's come through for us."
Green Bay is not an easy NFL city to punt in, especially once the temperatures start to dip in November. The wind patterns can be tricky not only inside Lambeau Field but also at practice.
Whelan has found a way to cut through all of it. Veteran long snapper Matt Orzech arrived in Green Bay during the same 2023 offseason as Whelan. Even now, Orzech is in awe of what his fellow specialist can do.
"Bombs. Honestly," said Orzech when asked what he saw from Whelan this past season. "From the day he showed up, it was immediately obvious that his leg explosion was pretty impressive. I've never seen somebody who hits 5.0-plus (seconds for hang time) punts consistently. Even in crazy wind or cold, there's still going to be a 5.0 on the chart for the day, which is unbelievable. It's crazy."
Melton and fellow flyer Zayne Anderson often have a good laugh about Whelan's ability to defy the laws of gravity at times and his ability to position the ball.
Whelan made obvious strides in his directional punting in 2025 while still downing 18 punts inside the 20. When the time came to swing away, Whelan could handle it, too. His 32 punts of 50-plus yards ranked fourth in the NFL and were the most by a Packer in a season dating back to 2000.
For good measure, Whelan knocked down one last accolade in the Packers' regular-season finale against Minnesota when he posted a gross average of 53.9 yards and a net average of 50.8 yards on a career-high eight punts.
His net average of 50.8 yards per punt was the second-best mark by an NFL player since 2000 in games with eight-plus punts (Johnny Hekker; Dec. 4, 2016).
Recognition isn't what drives Whelan, though. It's never been his goal to simply break records. He wants to win games and get to a Super Bowl. If his foot helps make that happen, then the 26-year-old punter feels like he's doing his job.
"I'm definitely proud of myself," Whelan said. "Obviously, a lot of work went into it, but the work doesn't stop. Got to beat it next year and so on and so on."
