Mark DeWayne Moseley (born March 12, 1948) is an American former professional
football
Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...
player who was a
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) for 16 seasons. He played for
Philadelphia Eagles
The Philadelphia Eagles are a professional American football team based in Philadelphia. The Eagles compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC East, East division. The team plays its ...
(1970), the
Houston Oilers (1971–72), the
Washington Redskins
The Washington Commanders are a professional American football team based in the Washington metropolitan area. The Commanders compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC East, East ...
(1974–86), and 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 ...
(1986). A native of
Livingston, Texas, Moseley played
quarterback
The quarterback (QB) is a position in gridiron football who are members of the offensive side of the ball and mostly line up directly behind the Lineman (football), offensive line. In modern American football, the quarterback is usually consider ...
at
Texas A&M University
Texas A&M University (Texas A&M, A&M, TA&M, or TAMU) is a public university, public, Land-grant university, land-grant, research university in College Station, Texas, United States. It was founded in 1876 and became the flagship institution of ...
and
Stephen F. Austin State University before switching to kicker for his
senior season at Stephen F. Austin.
Selected by the Eagles in the 14th round of the
1970 NFL draft
The 1970 NFL draft was the 35th National Football League draft and the first of the league's modern era, following the merger of the National Football League with the American Football League. It was held on January 27–28, 1970, at the Belmont ...
, he played one season with them and then two seasons with the Houston Oilers. He was out of football in 1973 before signing with the Washington Redskins in 1974, with whom he played until 1986. He won the
NFL Most Valuable Player Award during the strike-shortened
1982 season. He is the only pure
special teams player to win the NFL MVP award and is one of only three non-offensive MVPs.
Moseley was released by the Redskins in 1986 and retired that year after a few games with the Cleveland Browns.
Early life and education
Moseley grew up in
Livingston,
Texas
Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...
,
and played football at
Livingston High School.
After high school, he attended
Texas A&M University
Texas A&M University (Texas A&M, A&M, TA&M, or TAMU) is a public university, public, Land-grant university, land-grant, research university in College Station, Texas, United States. It was founded in 1876 and became the flagship institution of ...
from 1965 to 1966
and
Stephen F. Austin State University (SFA) from 1967 to 1969.
He played quarterback while at both schools until his senior season at SFA when he made the switch to placekicker.
In that season, he set
Lone Star Conference records for most points in a game and most field goals in a season.
Professional career
Moseley was selected 346th overall in the 14th round of the
1970 NFL draft
The 1970 NFL draft was the 35th National Football League draft and the first of the league's modern era, following the merger of the National Football League with the American Football League. It was held on January 27–28, 1970, at the Belmont ...
by the
Philadelphia Eagles
The Philadelphia Eagles are a professional American football team based in Philadelphia. The Eagles compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC East, East division. The team plays its ...
.
He was released by the Eagles in 1971 and signed by the
Houston Oilers only to be released again in 1972. He spent two years out of the NFL and moved back to Livingston, Texas, where he installed septic systems and coached high school sports. During this period, he sent letters to two dozen NFL teams and routinely practiced kicking with his children returning his kicks. In 1974, the Washington Redskins signed him as a free agent.
With the retirement of the
Minnesota Vikings
The Minnesota Vikings are a professional American football team based in Minneapolis. The Vikings compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. Founded in 1960 as ...
'
Rick Danmeier in 1982, Moseley became the sole full-time
straight on placekicker in the National Football League; there has only been one other (
Dirk Borgognone, who played two games in 1995) since then. In the 1960s, the "soccer-style" of kicking (wherein the kicker approaches the ball at an angle and kicks it with the instep) was introduced by the
Hungarian brothers
Pete and
Charlie Gogolak, and it is now universal in the NFL and other levels.
In the strike-shortened
1982 season, Moseley converted 23 straight field goals from 1981 to 1982,(a record at the time), made a league-leading 20 of 21
field goals, a then-record 95.2 success rate, and was responsible for 76 points.
He became the first placekicker to ever win the
Associated Press NFL Most Valuable Player; (Hall of Famer
Lou Groza
Louis Roy Groza (January 25, 1924 – November 29, 2000), nicknamed "the Toe", was an American professional American football, football Tackle (gridiron football position), offensive tackle and placekicker while playing his entire career for th ...
won the
Sporting News NFL Player of the Year Award in 1954 as a placekicker and
offensive tackle, followed by
George Blanda
George Frederick Blanda (September 17, 1927 – September 27, 2010) was an American professional American football, football quarterback and placekicker who played in the American Football League (AFL) and National Football League (NFL). Blanda ...
winning the same as a kicker and
quarterback
The quarterback (QB) is a position in gridiron football who are members of the offensive side of the ball and mostly line up directly behind the Lineman (football), offensive line. In modern American football, the quarterback is usually consider ...
in 1970.)
Moseley had a much rougher time in the postseason, missing four field goals in Washington's two postseason games. But in the Washington Redskins' 27–17 victory in
Super Bowl XVII
Super Bowl XVII was an American football game between the American Football Conference (AFC) champion Miami Dolphins and the National Football Conference (NFC) champion Washington Redskins to decide the National Football League (NFL) champion ...
over the
Miami Dolphins, Moseley kicked two
field goals and was successful on all three of his
extra point
Extra, Xtra, or The Extra may refer to:
Arts, entertainment and media Film
* The Extra (1962 film), ''The Extra'' (1962 film), a Mexican film
* The Extra (2005 film), ''The Extra'' (2005 film), an Australian film
Literature
* Extra (newspaper), ...
attempts. During the
following season, he led the NFL in scoring with 161 points. He also kicked the game-winning field goal in Washington's 24–21 win over the
San Francisco 49ers
The San Francisco 49ers (also written as the San Francisco Forty-Niners and nicknamed the Niners) are a professional American football team based in the San Francisco Bay Area. The 49ers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member ...
in the NFC championship game, despite missing four prior attempts in the game.
In
1986, the 38-year-old Moseley was released by the Washington Redskins mid-season. He remains their all-time leading scorer with 1,207 points. He signed with 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 ...
and retired at the end of the season, helping them win their divisional playoff game against the
New York Jets
The New York Jets are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Jets compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East division. The team p ...
with a game-winning field goal in double overtime despite missing two field goals in regulation and another in the first overtime period.
In his career, Moseley was successful on 300 out of 457 field-goal attempts (65%), successful on 482 out of 512 extra points attempts (94%), and scored a total of 1,382 points. He led the NFL in field goals made four times.
NFL career statistics
Career high/best
Personal life
Moseley owned two restaurants in Virginia and later became the director of franchising for
Five Guys Enterprises.
He has five children and 13 grandchildren. Moseley's younger sister, Pamela Moseley Carpenter, was murdered by
Johnny Paul Penry in 1979. After the killing, Moseley was extremely critical of the criminal justice system's treatment of Penry, who was released after serving two years of a five-year sentence for rape months before the murder took place. Moseley said he supported giving Penry the death penalty.
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Moseley, Mark
1948 births
American football placekickers
Cleveland Browns players
Houston Oilers players
Living people
National Conference Pro Bowl players
People from Livingston, Texas
Sportspeople from Rusk County, Texas
Philadelphia Eagles players
Players of American football from Texas
Stephen F. Austin Lumberjacks football players
Texas A&M Aggies football players
Washington Redskins players
NFL Most Valuable Player winners