Jacob Bruce Arians (born January 26, 1978) is a former

American football American football, referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada and also known as gridiron football, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular American football field, field with goalposts at e ...

placekicker In gridiron football, the placekicker (PK), or simply kicker (K), is the player responsible for attempts at scoring Field goal (football), field goals and extra points. In most cases, the placekicker also serves as the team's kickoff specialist ...

in the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a Professional gridiron football, professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National ...

(NFL). He played

college football College football is gridiron football that is played by teams of amateur Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. It was through collegiate competition that gridiron football American football in the United States, firs ...

at UAB. Arians spent less than one season as the field goal kicker for the

Buffalo Bills The Buffalo Bills are a professional American football team based in the Buffalo–Niagara Falls metropolitan area. The Bills compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East div ...

in 2001, signing with the team as an

undrafted free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player or manager who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under a contract at present ...

that summer to replace longtime kicker

Steve Christie Geoffrey Stephen Christie (born November 13, 1967) is a Canadian former professional football placekicker in the National Football League (NFL), who, as a member of the Buffalo Bills, became known for his ability to kick clutch field goals, even ...

, who was among the numerous players who joined the

San Diego Chargers The San Diego Chargers were a professional American football team in the National Football League (NFL). The Chargers played in San Diego, California from 1961 until 2016, before relocating back to the Greater Los Angeles area, where the franch ...

in the "Bills West" exodus. He did not handle kickoffs, which were handled by punter

Brian Moorman Brian Donald Moorman (born February 5, 1976) is an American former professional football player who was a punter in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Pittsburg State Gorillas, and was signed by the Seattle ...

. Arians beat out Jay Taylor for the open position. Due to several missed field goals and a missed extra point, Arians was released near the end of the 2001 season and was replaced by

Shayne Graham Michael Shayne Graham (born December 9, 1977) is an American former professional football player who was a placekicker for 15 seasons in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Virginia Tech Hokies. He made hi ...

, after which he never returned to professional football. He is the son of former

Tampa Bay Buccaneers The Tampa Bay Buccaneers (colloquially known as the Bucs) are a professional American football team based in Tampa, Florida. The Buccaneers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC S ...

Super Bowl-winning coach and former

Arizona Cardinals The Arizona Cardinals are a professional American football team based in the Phoenix metropolitan area. The Cardinals compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC West, West division. The ...

head coach

Bruce Arians Bruce Charles Arians (born October 3, 1952) is an American football executive and former coach in the National Football League (NFL). Since 2022, he has been a senior football consultant for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Arians was previously the h ...

.New kicker must fill some big shoes
/ref> Bruce was the

Cleveland Browns The Cleveland Browns are a professional American football team based in Cleveland. The Browns compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC North, North division. The team is named after ...

offensive coordinator during Jacob's one season in Buffalo, but the teams did not play each other that season.

References

1978 births Living people People from Blacksburg, Virginia Players of American football from Virginia American football placekickers Starkville High School alumni UAB Blazers football players Buffalo Bills players {{Amfoot-kicker-stub