Wednesday, July 25, 2012

Eagles sign veteran P Mat McBriar

PHILADELPHIA (The Phanatic Magazine) - The Eagles have agreed to terms with veteran punter Mat McBriar on a one-year contract.

The 33-year-old native of Australia earned two Pro Bowl selections during an eight-year career with the Dallas Cowboys from 2004-11.  He has punted 494 times for 22,369 yards for a 45.3 career average, which ranks fourth in NFL history. McBriar's career net average is 38.4 yards and he has downed 175 punts inside the opponents’ 20-yard line.

McBriar was originally signed as a rookie free agent by Denver in 2003 and was traded to Seattle later that year during the preseason. He eventually landed on the Cowboys practice squad on December 26, 2003. A former Australian rules football player, McBriar enrolled at the University of Hawaii, where he earned All-WAC honors as a senior with a 44.8-yard average.

McBriar earned All-Pro and Pro Bowl honors with the Cowboys following the 2006 and 2010 campaigns, becoming just the 2nd native of Australia to earn that distinction (Darren Bennett was the other). In 2006, his league-leading 48.2-yard average was the first 48+-yard average by an NFL punter since 1963. He also led the league in punting average (47.9) and net punting average (41.7) in 2010.

No comments: