Cowboys kicker Brandon Aubrey named NFC Special Teams Player of the Week
It’s been quite the turnaround at the kicker position for the Dallas Cowboys.
After veteran Brett Maher shanked a league-record four PATs in one game- a playoff appearance, no less- in January, it was apparent the team would move on. And while most fans spent the offseason eyeballing seasoned free agents like Mason Crosby, Robbie Gould, and Ryan Succop, the Cowboys settled on NFL newcomer Brandon Aubrey.
It turned out to be a stroke of genius; Aubrey was just named the NFC’s Special Teams Player of the Week for Sunday’s performance versus the Rams.
Aubrey went 5-for-5 on extra points and hit both of his field goal tries, including a booming 58-yarder during Dallas’s 43-20 home trouncing of Los Angeles. It was the rookie’s longest field goal of the season. His 18 consecutive three-pointers to start an NFL career ties a league record.
Keep on rollin’ 🧈
Brandon Aubrey → NFC Special Teams Player of the Week
🗞️: https://t.co/t1hMzZHLle pic.twitter.com/vLPxchGFMZ
— Dallas Cowboys (@dallascowboys) November 1, 2023
The onetime Notre Dame soccer star looked to be on his way to an MLS career after being a first-round draft pick for Toronto FC in 2017. But his soccer dreams had been completely derailed by 2018, and Aubrey became a software engineer.
It was only in 2019, when his wife encouraged him to try kicking an oblong ball instead, that Aubrey turned his attention from futbol to football. He went on to win back-to-back championships with the USFL’s Birmingham Stallions and was invited to camp with the Cowboys in July, where he beat out Tristan Vizcaino for the starting job.
Aubrey missed his very first NFL kick, an extra point attempt versus the Giants on opening night, but he’s been perfect since then, with the Cowboys coaching staff raving about his cannon of a leg, his effortless stroke, and his quiet confidence.
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Quarterback Dak Prescott even revealed that he’s nicknamed Aubrey “Butter” because he is so smooth.
And with this award, as special teams coordinator John Fassel joked upon first hearing the nickname, yes, Aubrey definitely appears to be on a roll.
