Mat McBriar (born 8 July 1979) is an Australian former professional player of

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 ...

who was a punter in the

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(NFL) for the

Dallas Cowboys The Dallas Cowboys are a professional American football team based in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. The Cowboys compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC East, East division. T ...

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 ...

Pittsburgh Steelers The Pittsburgh Steelers are a professional American football team based in Pittsburgh. The Steelers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC North, North division. Founded in 1933 P ...

and the

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. He played

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for the Hawaii Rainbow Warriors.

Early life

McBriar began as an

Australian rules football Australian football, also called Australian rules football or Aussie rules, or more simply football or footy, is a contact sport played between two teams of 18 players on an Australian rules football playing field, oval field, often a modified ...

player at

Brighton Grammar School Brighton Grammar School is a private school, private Anglican Church of Australia, Anglican day school for boys, located in Brighton, Victoria, Brighton, a south-eastern suburb of Melbourne, Victoria (Australia), Victoria, Australia. Founded in ...

and

Deakin University Deakin University is a public university in Victoria, Australia. Founded in 1974 with antecedent history since 1887, the university was named after Alfred Deakin, the second Prime Minister of Australia and a founding father of Australian Fede ...

(he attended three semesters). At one stage, he entered a junior superkick competition, finishing 3rd overall. He also practiced rowing. Unlike other countrymen such as Darren Bennett who earlier played in the NFL, McBriar was not a standout athlete in Australia. After performing well at an NFL-sponsored kicking competition in Waverley Park, Bennett helped him receive a football scholarship with the

University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa The University of Hawaii at Mānoa is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Honolulu, Hawaii, United States. It is the flagship campus of the University of Hawaiʻi system and houses the main offic ...

. There he recorded the

Warriors A warrior is a guardian specializing in combat or warfare, especially within the context of a tribal or clan-based warrior culture society that recognizes a separate warrior aristocracy, class, or caste. History Warriors seem to have been p ...

' all-time, single-game record with a 53.8 yards/attempt average against

Tulane University The Tulane University of Louisiana (commonly referred to as Tulane University) is a private research university in New Orleans, Louisiana, United States. Founded as the Medical College of Louisiana in 1834 by a cohort of medical doctors, it b ...

on 25 December 2002. After 3 years, he had the second-best career punting average for the Warriors with 42.22 yards per punt behind Jason Elam. As a junior, he made the second-team All- WAC after averaging 43.4 yards per punt, and earned All- WAC honors as a senior, after registering 48 punts for 2,148 yards (44.8 yards avg), with 12 downed inside the 20-yard line and a long of 73 yards. He finished his college career with 131 punts for 5,531 yards (42.2 avg.) and 32 downed inside the 20-yard line. In January 2003, McBriar was the first-ever Australian player to be selected to play in the Hula Bowl Maui, as punter for the Kai (North) team.

Professional career

Denver Broncos

On 28 April 2003, he was signed 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 ...

by the

Denver Broncos The Denver Broncos are a professional American football team based in Denver. The Broncos compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC West, West division. The team is headquartered in E ...

and had six punts for a 41.5-yard average in the preseason. He was traded to the

Seattle Seahawks The Seattle Seahawks are a professional American football team based in Seattle. The Seahawks compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC West, West division. The club entered the NFL a ...

on 22 August, for a conditional draft choice (not exercised).

Seattle Seahawks

2003 2003 was designated by the United Nations as the International Year of Fresh water, Freshwater. In 2003, a Multi-National Force – Iraq, United States-led coalition 2003 invasion of Iraq, invaded Iraq, starting the Iraq War. Demographic ...

, McBriar averaged 44.8 yards on five punts in his only preseason game with the

. He was waived on 31 August.

Dallas Cowboys

On 26 December

, he was signed by the

to their

practice squad In gridiron football, the practice squad, also called the taxi squad or practice roster, is a group of players signed by a team but not part of their main roster. They serve as extra players during the team's practices, often as part of the scou ...

, becoming the second Australian to play for the team, after punter/ kicker Colin Ridgway. The next year, he was named the starting punter. In

2006 2006 was designated as the International Year of Deserts and Desertification. Events January * January 1– 4 – Russia temporarily cuts shipment of natural gas to Ukraine during a price dispute. * January 12 – A stampede during t ...

, he registered a 75-yard punt which made the record books as the second longest in Cowboys' history. He was named

National Football Conference The National Football Conference (NFC) is a conference of the National Football League (NFL), the highest level of professional American football in the United States. The NFC and its counterpart, the American Football Conference (AFC), each h ...

Special Teams In American football, the specific role that a player takes on the field is referred to as their position. Under the modern rules of American football, both teams are allowed 11 players on the field at one time and have "unlimited free substitu ...

Player of the Week twice and became just the second Australian player to be selected to the

Pro Bowl The National Football League All-Star Game (1939–1942), Pro Bowl (1951–2022), or Pro Bowl Games (since 2023) is an annual event held by the National Football League (NFL) featuring the league's All-star, star players. The format has changed ...

. His league leading 48.2 yards-per-punt average in the 2006 season broke Sam Baker's team record of 45.4 yards per punt, made him the first player to average over 48 yards per punt since

1963 Events January * January 1 – Bogle–Chandler case: Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation scientist Dr. Gilbert Bogle and Mrs. Margaret Chandler are found dead (presumed poisoned), in bushland near the Lane Cove ...

and tied him for fifth best in NFL history. He was the Cowboys' first

punter since

1971 * The year 1971 had three partial solar eclipses (Solar eclipse of February 25, 1971, February 25, Solar eclipse of July 22, 1971, July 22 and Solar eclipse of August 20, 1971, August 20) and two total lunar eclipses (February 1971 lunar eclip ...

. On 28 February

2007 2007 was designated as the International Heliophysical Year and the International Polar Year. Events January * January 1 **Bulgaria and Romania 2007 enlargement of the European Union, join the European Union, while Slovenia joins the Eur ...

, the Cowboys extended McBriar's contract to a 5-year $8.5-million contract, that included a $2.5-million signing bonus. This contract made him the highest-paid punter in the league. That season, he narrowly missed a Pro Bowl selection, after being chosen as an alternate for the

team in case of an injury. On 12 October

2008 2008 was designated as: *International Year of Languages *International Year of Planet Earth *International Year of the Potato *International Year of Sanitation The Great Recession, a worldwide recession which began in 2007, continued throu ...

, he sustained a season-ending fracture in his kicking foot, after his first career blocked punt, which was also returned for the game-winning

touchdown A touchdown (abbreviated as TD) is a scoring play in gridiron football. Scoring a touchdown grants the team that scored it 6 points. Whether running, passing, returning a kickoff or punt, or recovering a turnover, a team scores a touchd ...

on the final play of an overtime loss against the

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 ...

. Before the injury he was averaging 49 yards per punt and had a 38.8 net punting average. In

2009 2009 was designated as the International Year of Astronomy by the United Nations to coincide with the 400th anniversary of Galileo Galilei's first known astronomical studies with a telescope and the publication of Astronomia Nova by Joha ...

, he had a team record 38 punts downed inside the red zone, ranking third in the NFL and sixth all-time in a single season in league history. With the injury of Brad Johnson that same year, he took up holding duties for the Cowboys on field goals and

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. However, after several missed field goals, holding duties were handed over to Tony Romo in the 13th game versus the

. McBriar resumed his role as the team's holder during the 2010 season, in which he also was named to his second

, after leading the NFL in both gross punting average (47.9 yards) and net average (41.7). He also had 22 punts downed inside the red zone, with eight

touchback In American football, a touchback is a ruling that is made and signaled by an official when the ball becomes dead on or behind a team's own goal line (i.e., in their end zone) and the opposing team gave the ball the momentum, or impetus, to travel ...

s. In

2011 The year marked the start of a Arab Spring, series of protests and revolutions throughout the Arab world advocating for democracy, reform, and economic recovery, later leading to the depositions of world leaders in Tunisia, Egypt, and Yemen ...

, he was bothered during the season by a nerve problem that affected his left foot and was placed on the

injured reserve list The injured reserve list ( IR list) is a designation used in North American professional sports leagues for athletes who suffer injuries and become unable to play. The exact name of the list varies by league; it is known as "injured reserve" in t ...

before the final game. He finished the year with a 43.8 gross average and a 36.1 net average per punt. His contract was not renewed after the season, leaving as the franchise career leader in net average (38.1), gross average (45.3) and punts inside the 20-yard line (175).

Philadelphia Eagles

On 25 July

2012 2012 was designated as: *International Year of Cooperatives *International Year of Sustainable Energy for All Events January *January 4 – The Cicada 3301 internet hunt begins. * January 12 – Peaceful protests begin in the R ...

, McBriar signed a one-year contract with the

to compete with Chas Henry for the starting position. He was released on 29 August; however, he was re-signed on 25 September to replace Henry as the team's punter. He was waived on 25 March

2013 2013 was the first year since 1987 to contain four unique digits (a span of 26 years). 2013 was designated as: *International Year of Water Cooperation *International Year of Quinoa Events January * January 5 – 2013 Craig, Alask ...

, although his 46.5 yards average per punt at the time was the highest in Eagles history.

Pittsburgh Steelers

On 29 October

, he was signed by the

to replace Zoltán Meskó. After playing in 9 games and averaging 41.3 yards per punt, his contract was not renewed after the season.

San Diego Chargers

On 9 December

2014 The year 2014 was marked by the surge of the Western African Ebola epidemic, West African Ebola epidemic, which began in 2013, becoming the List of Ebola outbreaks, most widespread outbreak of the Ebola, Ebola virus in human history, resul ...

, McBriar signed with the

to replace the injured Mike Scifres, whose season ended after suffering a broken collarbone. His contract was not renewed at the end of the season. On 22 July 2015, McBriar announced his retirement after playing 11 seasons in the NFL.

NFL career statistics

Regular season

Playoffs

Personal life

A biography of McBriar's story was published in 2014. ''An Aussie Takes A Punt - Mat McBriar's Journey From Australia to the NFL'' was written by F.A. James.

References

External links

Former schoolboy footballer to kick up his heels
{{DEFAULTSORT:McBriar, Mat 1979 births Living people Sportspeople from Melbourne Australian expatriate sportspeople in the United States Australian players of American football American football punters Hawaii Rainbow Warriors football players Denver Broncos players Seattle Seahawks players Dallas Cowboys players Philadelphia Eagles players Pittsburgh Steelers players San Diego Chargers players National Conference Pro Bowl players People educated at Brighton Grammar School