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Thomas James Feely is an American sportscaster and former professional football player. He started his playing career as a placekicker with the Florida Bobcats in the Arena Football League (AFL) as a street free agent in 1999 before playing for several National Football League (NFL) teams. Since his retirement, Feely has worked as a reporter and analyst for CBS/Turner Sports.
Douglas Robert Zachariah Brien is an American former professional football player who was a placekicker for 12 seasons in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the California Golden Bears and was selected by the San Francisco 49ers in the third round of the 1994 NFL Draft. Brien played in the NFL for seven teams: San Francisco New Orleans, Indianapolis, Tampa Bay, Minnesota, New York Jets, and Chicago. After retiring from the NFL, Brien co-founded the real estate investment firms Waypoint Homes and Mynd.
Martin Gramatica is an Argentine-born former American football kicker who played in the National Football League (NFL) for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, the Indianapolis Colts, the Dallas Cowboys and the New Orleans Saints. He played college football for the Kansas State Wildcats where he won the Lou Groza Award and was recognized twice as an All-American. He was selected by the Buccaneers in the third round of the 1999 NFL draft.
Guillermo C. "Bill" Gramatica is a former American football placekicker in the National Football League (NFL) for the Arizona Cardinals and Miami Dolphins. He also was a member of the Tampa Bay Storm in the Arena Football League (AFL). He was drafted by the Cardinals in the fourth round of the 2001 NFL Draft. He played college football at the University of South Florida. Gramatica is perhaps best known for tearing a knee ligament in a celebratory leap in 2001.
John Michael Carney is an American former professional football kicker who played in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Notre Dame Fighting Irish and was signed by the Cincinnati Bengals as an undrafted free agent in 1987.
Olindo Franco Mare is an American former professional football player who was a placekicker in the National Football League (NFL). He was originally signed by the New York Giants as an undrafted free agent in 1996. He played college football at MacMurray College and Syracuse. Mare, who was selected to the Pro Bowl in 1999, has also played for the Miami Dolphins, New Orleans Saints, Seattle Seahawks, Carolina Panthers and Chicago Bears.
Russell Erxleben is an American former professional football player and currency investor. He shares the record for the longest successful field goal in NCAA history at 67 yards, which he set in 1977 while playing for the University of Texas. Erxleben was a three-time All-American punter. He was selected in the first round of the NFL draft, an extremely rare occurrence for a kicker. After an NFL career lasting six years, he became a currency investor. Convicted of securities fraud in 1999, he was released from federal prison in 2005. He was again convicted of investment fraud in 2014 and sentenced to 90 months in federal prison.
Garrett Hartley is a former American football placekicker. He was signed by the Denver Broncos as an undrafted free agent in 2008. Later that year he became the placekicker for the New Orleans Saints, for whom he set an NFL record for most consecutive successful field goals to start a career, and then became the first kicker in NFL history to convert three field goals of more than 40 yards in the Super Bowl. His Saints won Super Bowl XLIV, beating the Indianapolis Colts. He played college football at Oklahoma.
Robert Cary Blanchard was an American football placekicker in the National Football League (NFL) for the New Orleans Saints, New York Jets, Indianapolis Colts, Washington Redskins, New York Giants and Arizona Cardinals. He played college football at Oklahoma State University.
The 2008 season was the Minnesota Vikings' 48th in the National Football League (NFL) and their third under head coach Brad Childress. They won their 17th NFC North division title with a 10–6 record, the first time since 2000 that they made the playoffs with a winning record; however, they finished behind the New York Giants and Carolina Panthers and had to play in the wild card round of the playoffs. They were paired with Childress's former team, the Philadelphia Eagles, who won 26–14. Second-year running back Adrian Peterson led the league in rushing with 1,760 yards.
The 2008 season was the New Orleans Saints' 42nd in the National Football League (NFL), their 33rd playing home games at the Louisiana Superdome and their third under head coach Sean Payton. The Saints improved on their 7–9 record from the 2007 season with an 8-8 record, however, they would miss the playoffs for the second consecutive season. This was the only season under Drew Brees that they finished last in the division. Despite this, Brees became just the second quarterback to throw for over 5,000 passing yards and won the NFL Offensive Player of the Year Award.
The 2009 season was the Minnesota Vikings' 49th in the National Football League (NFL) and their fourth under head coach Brad Childress. The Vikings improved upon their 10–6 record and defended their NFC North title from 2008, their first successful defense of a divisional title since they won six NFC Central titles in a row between 1973 and 1978. They beat the Dallas Cowboys in the NFC Divisional Playoff at the Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome in Minneapolis, but lost the NFC Championship Game in overtime to the eventual Super Bowl champion New Orleans Saints, missing out on what would have been their first Super Bowl since Super Bowl XI in 1976. This year's NFC Championship Game is also dubbed by many as the "Bountygate Game" that also resulted in several players and coaching staff receiving 12-month suspensions three years later. The Vikings had 10 Pro Bowlers and four All-Pros on their roster, both league-highs for the season.
Jamarca Deshaun Sanford is former American football safety. He was drafted by the Minnesota Vikings in the seventh round of the 2009 NFL Draft as the 231st pick. He formerly played college football for the Ole Miss Rebels at the University of Mississippi.
Kai August Forbath is an American former football placekicker who played in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the UCLA Bruins, earning consensus All-American honors and winning the Lou Groza Award in 2009. He played in the NFL for the Dallas Cowboys, the Washington Redskins, the New Orleans Saints, the Minnesota Vikings, the Jacksonville Jaguars, the New England Patriots, and the Los Angeles Rams.
Carl Davis Ward is a former American football player. He played college football as a halfback for the University of Michigan from 1964 to 1966 and professional football in the National Football League (NFL) for the Cleveland Browns and New Orleans Saints from 1967 to 1969.
Blair Richard Walsh is an American former football placekicker who played in the National Football League (NFL) for six seasons, primarily with the Minnesota Vikings. Walsh played college football for the Georgia Bulldogs and was selected by the Vikings in the sixth round of the 2012 NFL draft.
Jake Daniel Elliott, nicknamed Jake "The Make" for his kicking ability, is an American football placekicker for the Philadelphia Eagles of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Memphis. He was part of the Eagles' Super Bowl LII championship team against the New England Patriots.
Ryan Mack Ramczyk is an American football offensive tackle for the New Orleans Saints of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Wisconsin, and was drafted by the Saints in the first round of the 2017 NFL draft. A native of Stevens Point, Wisconsin, Ramczyk attended four different schools before transferring to Wisconsin–Madison in 2014, where he became an All-American lineman for the Badgers in the 2016 season.
Greg Joseph is a South African-born American professional football placekicker for the Green Bay Packers of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Florida Atlantic and signed with the Miami Dolphins as an undrafted free agent in 2018. Later that year, Joseph made his NFL debut with the Cleveland Browns. He has also been a member of the Miami Dolphins, Carolina Panthers, Tennessee Titans, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, and Minnesota Vikings.
References
- ↑ "2008 NFL Draft Listing". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved 2023-05-12.