Competition is supposed to make you better, but if you're the Green Bay Packers, you might not want to bring in a punter for, say, the next 10 years.

Not with Tim Masthay on the roster.

The only punter in camp, Masthay did more than pick up where he left off at the end of last season.

It's just one preseason game, but the way Masthay boomed punts Saturday night against the Cleveland Browns, the closest thing to competition he'll face in the near future is the roster spot for the Pro Bowl in Hawaii.

"He's having a great (camp)," kicker Mason Crosby said after the Packers' 27-17 exhibition loss. "From our off-season together to seeing him hit the ball the way he did today was awesome.

"I'm really happy for him for how hard he's working. He's got good confidence, just a controlled feeling. I'm excited to see how his season goes."

Masthay punted five times and averaged 55.6 yards on his first four, hitting distances of 58, 59 and 60 yards on three of them. His final punt was only 39 yards, but it was an Australian-style pooch punt that landed inside the 10-yard line and was downed at the Cleveland 7.

At the end of last season, Masthay played a huge role in both victories over the Chicago Bears in frigid temperatures, proving he has what it takes to compete in the NFC North. With near perfect weather conditions Saturday - 82 degrees, 53% humidity, very little wind - Masthay unloaded bomb after bomb.

"I've been hitting it pretty well in practice," Masthay said. "Tonight I felt pretty good, I had a little extra pop in my leg. I got in a groove and just rode that groove the rest of the game."

JSOnline wrote:

Everyone knows that the Green Bay Packers' special teams are anything but "special." They ranked as the worst special teams in league in 2009, and it was clear to Ted Thompson that he could no longer just ignore the problem.

Action had to be taken.

Jon Ryan was an above-average punter, but a terrible performance against Chicago in Week 16 of the 2007 season left Thompson convinced that he would need a new one soon, and Thompson's decision to release Ryan in the pursuing season has been one of his more controversial decisions as a General Manager.

Not just because Ryan became one of the best punters in the NFL, but because Jeremy Kapinos turned out to be one of the worst punters in the NFL. It was clearly just a bad decision.

But alas, we may have an answer for our problem.

Mike McCarthy had stated in the 2010 offseason that the punting game was simply "unacceptable," and that action needed to be taken. So Green Bay's scouting team began to dig deep for anything they could find, and as is the Thompson way, they didn't find anyone that could start right away, but two players that had a lot of potential.

Enter Tim Masthay and Chris Bryan, who both competed for the punting job. Obviously, Masthay emerged the victor.

But as the season dragged on, it was clear that the punting game wasn't improving. Masthay even allowed a punt return for a touchdown by Devin Hester in Week 3.

With such an unimpressive performance, Masthay was on the verge of being cut.

Fortunately, things turned around just in time for the 24-year-old rookie. In Week 8 of the 2010 season, Masthay had forced three fair catches and has been thriving ever since. Coach McCarthy was so pleased with the punting game that it nearly moved him to tears.
EDITED

Bleacher Report wrote:

I think sometimes the fans AND the coaches forget just how important a punter can be. Look at what he did in the games last year. He pinned back the Bears and the Jets and was huge all season.

Originally Posted by: Cheesey 

But alas, we may have an answer for our problem.

"Bleacher Report" wrote: