Mr. Claus, if you’re reading this before your sleigh is fully loaded up for this year’s ride, you may want to grab a bigger trophy case to drop off for Brandon Aubrey.
He’s quickly running out of space in his current one.
The Cowboys kicker has been named NFC Special Teams Player of the Week for his four-field goal performance in Sunday night’s 26-24 win over the Tampa bay Buccaneers. Incredibly, all four boots came from 49 yards or beyond.
Aubrey won the weekly award twice last season as a rookie. He won the monthly version of the award for September of this season, as well in both October and December of last year.
The second-year phenom nailed kicks of 49 and 53 yards on Sunday night, as well as two from 58 yards in the Week 16 win. That gave him 14 so far in 2024 from 50-plus, the most in league history from that distance in a single season (although Texans specialist Ka’imi Fairbairn has 13 and could theoretically be the recordholder by season’s end).
Per NFL.com, Sunday marked just the fourth time ever that a kicker has converted multiple field goals from 58 yards or longer, and Aubrey’s done it two of those times.
The 29-year-old seems a strong contender to be named to his second Pro Bowl and could bring home a second straight All-Pro nod. He is a perfect 28-for-28 on PATs and has connected on 85.7% of his field goal tries this season, including a remarkable 87.5% on attempts from 50 or longer.
Aubrey drilled a 66-yarder earlier in the season, the second-longest in NFL history. He tried one from 70 yards in Week 15 but sailed the attempt wide left. Coaches blamed windy conditions at Charlotte’s Bank of America Stadium for the miss and believe 70 yards is within Aubrey’s range.