Robert James Malone (born February 4, 1988) 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 ...

punter. He was signed by the

Jacksonville Jaguars The Jacksonville Jaguars are a professional American football team based in Jacksonville, Florida. The Jaguars compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC South, South division. 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 ...

in 2010. 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 ...

Fresno State California State University, Fresno (Fresno State) is a public university in Fresno, California, United States. It is part of the California State University system. The university had a fall 2020 enrollment of 25,341 students. It offers 60 ba ...

. He was also a member of the

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 ...

Detroit Lions The Detroit Lions are a professional American football team based in Detroit. The Lions compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. The team plays their home game ...

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 ...

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 ...

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 ...

and

New York Giants The New York Giants are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Giants compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC East, East division. The ...

College career

Malone played

. There he was a first-team All- WAC selection after punting 44 times for a 45.2-yard average, with 17 of his kicks downed inside the opponent's 20-yard line. He also kicked 15 punts for 50 or more yards, including a career long of 74. In his collegiate career, Malone played in 41 games and punted 120 times for 5,117 yards with a 42.6-yard average and 44 punts inside the 20.

Professional career

Jacksonville Jaguars

Malone originally entered the NFL as an undrafted free agent with the

in the spring of 2010. However, he was released before training camp by the Jaguars, who stuck with their incumbent punter Adam Podlesh.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Malone was signed by the Buccaneers on October 13, 2010, to replace

Chris Bryan Chris Bryan (born 6 March 1982) is a former sportsman who played both Australian rules football and American football professionally. Bryan played in the Australian Football League (AFL) from 2005 until 2009, and then in the National Football Le ...

as the team's punter. He was waived on August 29, 2011.

Detroit Lions

On November 11, 2011, Malone signed with the

after an injury to

Ryan Donahue Ryan Donahue (born March 17, 1988) is an American former professional football player who was a punter in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Iowa Hawkeyes and was signed by the Lions as an undrafted free age ...

. He was waived on November 15 and was replaced by Ben Graham.

San Diego Chargers

He signed with the Chargers on May 30, 2012.

New York Jets

Malone was signed by the

on September 4, 2012. He became the team's starting punter with the release of incumbent

T. J. Conley Timothy Joseph Conley Jr. (born August 29, 1985) is an American former professional football player who was a punter in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Idaho Vandals and was signed as an undrafted free age ...

. He was released on September 16, 2013.

Washington Redskins

Malone signed a reserve/future contract with the

on December 31, 2013. He was waived for final roster cuts on August 29, 2014.

New York Giants

Malone signed a contract with the New York Giants in 2015. On September 1, 2015, he was waived by the Giants.

Personal life

Robert Malone grew up in Riverside, California and went to Martin Luther King High School. He punted for the high school football team. His cousin, Tom Malone, was an NFL punter and played

USC USC may refer to: Education United States * Universidad del Sagrado Corazón, Santurce, Puerto Rico * University of South Carolina, Columbia, South Carolina ** University of South Carolina System, a state university system of South Carolina * ...

. In October 2022, Robert was inducted into the Martin Luther King Athletic Hall of Fame.

References

External links

Fresno State Bulldogs bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Malone, Robert 1988 births Living people Players of American football from Orange, California Players of American football from Riverside, California American football punters Fresno State Bulldogs football players Jacksonville Jaguars players Tampa Bay Buccaneers players Detroit Lions players New York Jets players Washington Redskins players New York Giants players Martin Luther King High School (Riverside, California) alumni San Diego Chargers players