Sat, Dec 26, 2009 page19

• NFL : The ‘punter from down under’ is making his mark

  • AP
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  The Arizona Cardinals’ “punter from down under” is on a roll, one that drops the football near the opponent’s goal line with uncanny consistency.

  Heading into tomorrow’s home game against the St Louis Rams, Ben Graham has 62 consecutive punts without a touchback, 32 of them inside the opponent’s 20-yard line.

  The ball has landed like a perfect nine-iron shot to the green, either bouncing straight up or a few yards backward.

  

  Ben Graham of the Arizona Cardinals punts the ball away during an NFL preseason game against the Denver Broncos at Invesco Field in Denver, Colorado, on Sept. 3. The Broncos defeated the Cardinals 19-0.

  PHOTO: AFP

  “It’s amazing because I think so few times do you think of a punter as a weapon,” Cardinals quarterback Kurt Warner said.

  The 1.96m-tall, 107kg Australian said he’s learned to kick that way, end-over-end with just the right distance, since he started to walk, growing up in the heart of Australian rules football country.

  Graham excelled at Aussie rules, playing 12 seasons at the professional level in Melbourne — all with Geelong — before retiring in 2004.

  “It’s a pretty brutal sport, but I came out of it with my body intact,” Graham said.

  In 2005, he signed with the New York Jets, at 31 years and 13 days, the second-oldest player to make his debut in an NFL game since the 1970 AFL-NFL merger.

  It was not an easy adjustment.

  “I didn’t realize all the rules when I first got here. I didn’t know that punting was a bad thing,” Graham said. “I wanted to punt all the time. I was disappointed when I didn’t get to punt.”

  He spent three seasons with the Jets before being released in September last year, then played one game with the New Orleans Saints before being cut again.

  Disillusioned, Graham thought about taking his wife and three children back to Australia, but with his children enrolled in school, the family decided to hold on for one more season.

  Graham needed a job and Arizona needed a punter after releasing Dirk Johnson late in the season.

  Graham signed with the Cardinals on Dec. 1 last year, destined to play a significant role in the team’s unlikely run to the Super Bowl.

  In the first round of the playoffs against Atlanta, Graham had three punts inside the Falcons’ 10-yard line, one leading to a safety. Despite a sore groin, he landed five punts inside the 20-yard line in the NFC Championship game against Philadelphia, including one that went out of bounds at the Eagles’ seven-yard line with nine seconds to play.

  The first Australian to play in the Super Bowl, Graham had three punts inside the Pittsburgh 20-yard line, one at the two-yard line that resulted in another safety.

  “When we brought him in last year and he became our punter, that was one of the things that we were greatly surprised, pleasantly surprised, that he was so good at doing and he’s obviously taken it to another level this season,” coach Ken Whisenhunt said.

  Graham was rewarded with a two-year contract with the Cardinals and it has been money well spent.

  In last Sunday’s 31-24 win against the Detroit Lions, he punted seven times for a 50.3-yard average. Three landed inside the 20-yard line.

  He attributes his success to giving up worrying so much about technique.

  “The more you try to perfect something, sometimes it can take away from what you’re actually trying to get done,” Graham said. “So once I realized that and got back to just using my natural ability, I was able to become more consistent, which is what I always strive for.”

  For Warner, Graham is added security.

  “You don’t feel like you have to make a big play and score every time,” Warner said. “You get around midfield and third down and you don’t have to throw there — throw the ball away and you know that you’re going to flip the field position, that they’re going to be pinned back in a tough situation.”

  Overall, Graham has had 37 of 76 punts (49 percent) land inside the 20-yard line this season. He is five shy of the NFL record of 42 set by Andy Lee of San Francisco in 2007.

  His distance is among the best, too.

  His 47.5-yard average is third in the league, behind Lee (47.9) and Shane Lechler of Oakland (51.5).

  “It was only this time last year that I was out of a job, so I’m just enjoying a good ride,” Graham said.
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