Ben Graham (football)
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| Personal Info | |
|---|---|
| Birth | November 2, 1973, |
| Recruited from | Leopold/Geelong U19 |
| Height/Weight | 196 cm / 96 kg |
| Playing Career¹ | |
| Debut | Round 21, August 21, 1993, Geelong vs. Essendon, at Kardinia Park |
| Team(s) | Geelong (1993-2004)
219 games, 145 goals |
| ¹ Statistics to end of 2005 season | |
| Career Highlights | |
|
|
Ben Graham (born November 2, 1973) is a former Australian rules football player and currently on the roster of the New York Jets National Football League (NFL) team.
Contents |
[edit] AFL career
Graham was recruited from the Geelong U19s with pick 40 in the 1992 Australian Football League (AFL) pre-season draft. He was Geelong's "Best First Year Player" in the reserves team of 1992, and made his debut with the Geelong seniors late in 1993.
Graham was noted for his long kicking (in particular his expertise at the torpedo punt), and could play at both ends of the ground as a key position player. He played at centre half-forward and could convert goals from distances of 60 metres, as well as playing at centre half-back, where his booming kicks cleared the ball from defence, particularly during kickouts.
Graham went on to play 219 games for the Geelong Football Club in the Australian Football League from 1993 to 2004. He captained the side from 2000 to 2002, and won the club's Best and Fairest award (the Carji Greeves Medal) in 1999. Graham was renowned for his long, accurate kicking, and in 2004 he surprised many in Australia when he retired from Australian rules football to pursue a career as a punter in the United States National Football League. He had first been approached by the New York Jets in 1997 to try out as a punter, but decided to stay in the AFL.
[edit] NFL career
| Ben Graham (football) | |
|---|---|
| Date of birth | November 2, 1973 |
| Place of birth | Leopold |
| Position(s) | Punter |
| College | Deakin University (Australia) |
| Statistics | |
| Team(s) | |
| 2005-present | New York Jets |
Graham was signed to a short-term contract by the New York Jets in January 2005. Graham moved to New York City and attended Jets training camp at Hofstra University, before being confirmed as the team's starting punter for the 2005 NFL season when his predecessor Micah Knorr was released [1]. When Graham played his first NFL regular season game, (against the Kansas City Chiefs at Arrowhead Stadium on September 11, 2005) he became the third person after Colin Ridgeway and Darren Bennett to play in both the AFL and the NFL, and fourth Australian NFL player. He also became the oldest rookie ever to be part of an NFL opening day roster at age 31.
On May 22, 2006, the Jets signed Graham to a six-year contract worth US$5.17 million.[2]
In late 2006, Graham made history becoming the first Australian to captain an American pro-sports team when he joined the leadership team of the New York Jets. He also became the only player to captain a team in two professional sports leagues. [1] Graham also helped introduce the drop punt style of kicking prevalent in Australian rules football, which improves kicking efficiency and is said to be a new introduction to the game of American football. [3]
[edit] References
- ^ "Graham elected a NY Jets Captain" worldfootynews.com September 11 2006. URL Accessed September 11 2006.
Salvado, John. "NY Jets punt on Graham", Fox Sports, 28 August 2005.
Lange, Randy. "Aussie has a leg up on the punting job", North Jersey Media Group, 1 August 2005.
[edit] External links
[edit] American football
[edit] Australian rules
| Preceded by Peter Riccardi |
Geelong Best and Fairest winner 1999 |
Succeeded by Steven King |
| Preceded by Leigh Colbert |
Geelong Captain 2000-2002 |
Succeeded by Steven King |
