Joe Shimko of NC State became the fifth winner of the Patrick Mannelly Award on Saturday at a ceremony outside of Chicago. Shimko was voted best FBS long snapper by a close margin over Peter Bowden (Wisconsin) and Marco Ortiz (Nebraska).
The Award continue to grow in popularity and notoriety. As one of the Founders, we are seeking admission as an associate member of the National College Football Awards Association to provide an even greater platform for this tremendous Award.
Week Thirteen of the NFL season is complete and brought a rare special teams coaching change during the season.
The Titans had a rough day on special teams in an overtime loss to the Colts. They had blocked punts, a fumbled punt and a missed extra point. The Titans punter was injured on one of the punt mishaps and, as a result, the Titans fired Craig Ackerman yesterday. Tom Quinn will replace him in that role.
The Patriots had a large special teams workout last week that included snappers Carson Tinker and Dalton Godfrey.
Just two snappers recorded tackles in punt coverage this week. Ross Matiscik of the Jaguars continued his tremendous coverage season by adding two solo tackles, giving him six on the season, and Jack McQuaide added an assisted tackle for the Lions.
The NFL Long Snappers Chart after Week Thirteen is below.
Week Twelve of the NFL season is complete and next week will bring another special teams coach in the head coaching role, at least temporarily. The Panthers fired Frank Reich yesterday and Chris Tabor will serve as interim head coach. Tabor previously served as interim head coach for the Bears.
This weekend there was a rare snapper tryout in Denver after Mitch Fraboni appeared on the injury report. Veteran snapper Matt Overton and Tucker Addington were brought in, but neither was signed and Fraboni was able to play Sunday.
Morgan Cox of the Titans was named his team’s Art Rooney Award nominee. The Award is given annually for on-field sportsmanship. A panel will narrow the list to eight finalists and the winner is voted on by current NFL players and announced during the NFL Honors program.
There was a rare accomplishment in Saturday’s college football action as SMU snapper Will Benton scored what has been called the most unlikely touchdown of the season against Navy. Following a muffed punt by the Navy returner, the ball rolled in the end zone where Benton recovered it for a touchdown.
Three snappers recorded tackles in punt coverage this week. Casey Kreiter (Giants) had a solo stop, while Trent Sieg (Cowboys) and Mitch Fraboni (Broncos) added assisted tackles.
The NFL Long Snappers Chart following Week Twelve is below.
Week Eleven of the NFL season is complete and snappers had the rare opportunity to be part of signature plays downfield and on a fake punt.
Ross Matiscik of the Jaguars recorded what I will call a “hat trick” for snappers. He made a tackle in punt coverage, forced a fumble and recovered it on the same play.
Andrew DePaola also got some TV time with his excellent fake punt snap that allowed the Vikings to get a first down against the Broncos.
Not to be outdone, in the CFL’s Grey Cup game this weekend, veteran snapper Mike Benson of Winnipeg also recovered a fumbled punt in the second quarter of their last-second loss to Montreal.
In addition to the Matiscik hat trick, Thomas Hennessy (Jets) added two solo tackles and Charley Hughlett (Browns) added an assisted tackle.
The NFL Long Snappers Chart after Week Eleven is below.
Week Ten was an active and eventful one for snappers Jake McQuaide replaced the injured Scott Daly in Detroit and was part of an NFL record six game-winning field goals to end a game. In addition to the Lions, the Texans, Cardinals, Browns, Seahawks and Broncos all had successful field goals to end their games.
Snapper Christian Kuntz of the Steelers appeared to suffer an ankle injury in the win against the Packers but was able to finish the game without issues. Camaron Cheesman of the Commanders, who was able to overcome some poor weeks of snapping, had another rough day.
Rookie Chris Stoll of the Seahawks and veteran Josh Harris of the Chargers were selected as the two snappers on the Pro Football Focus midseason All-Pro team.
Despite the loss last night, Reid Ferguson of the Bills had a dream night for a long snapper. He was the subject of a nice profile during the game broadcast for his event for veterans and then added two solo tackles, including a huge hit late in the game. Ross Matiscik (Jaguars) and Harris (Chargers) had solo tackles, while Zach Triner of the Buccaneers tallied an assisted tackle.
The NFL Long Snappers Chart after Week Ten is below.
This evening, The Patrick Mannelly Award announced the 10 semi-finalist long snappers for this year’s Award. The Award, now in its fifth year, will be given at a live ceremony and dinner outside of Chicago, Illinois on December 9, 2023.
Below are the 10 snappers that will be narrowed to 3 finalists on November 27, 2023. The distinguished Selection Committee for the Award will carefully review the film and bios of the final 3 to help select the winner.
All three of last year’s finalists signed NFL contracts and winner Chris Stoll (Seahawks) and runner-up Alex Ward (Rams) both made rosters as rookies.
There will finally be a change at the snapping position but it will happen in Week Ten. Scott Daly of the Lions was injured on the final snap in Week Eight and will require knee surgery. Veteran Jake McQuaide, who was in camp with the Lions, was added to the practice squad and should be activated next Sunday since the Lions had a bye this week.
While not directly related to snapping, there were some unique accomplishments with kickers in Week Nine. Cowboys rookie Brandon Aubrey broke an NFL record by making his first 19 field goal attempts to start his career. Aubrey is 28 years old and was a software engineer before giving the NFL a shot after a pro soccer career in the MLS and time in the USFL. Josh Lambo, who kicked for the Chargers and Jaguars, had a similar path from playing pro soccer in the MLS to the NFL.
Texans running back Dare Ogunbowale became the first position player since Wes Welker in 2004 to kick a field goal in an NFL game. After regular kicker Ka’imi Fairbairn suffered a quad injury in the second quarter, Ogunbowale took over kicking duties and kicked a 29-yard field goal in the fourth quarter.
Two snappers recorded tackles in punt coverage as Zach Triner (Buccaneers) had a solo tackle and Luke Rhodes (Colts) added an assisted tackle.
The NFL Long Snappers Chart after Week Nine is below.
Week Eight is complete and the long snapping position remains a model of consistency. Once again, there were no major performance issues or known injuries.
With such stability, tackles are about the only news to report, so four snappers recorded tackles in punt coverage this week. Thomas Hennessy (Jets) had two assisted tackles, while Mitchell Fraboni (Broncos) added a solo stop. Christian Kuntz (Steelers) and Jacob Bobenmoyer (Raiders) each tallied an assisted tackle.
The NFL Long Snappers Chart after Week Eight is below.
We are seven weeks into the NFL season and the snapping position continues to be stable and without any changes.
The most notable snapping event this week was likely created by Myles Garrett of the Browns, who leaped over Colts’ long snapper Luke Rhodes to block a 60-year field goal attempt. Recall any contact with the snapper would have been a penalty.
Garrett was asked about the difficulty of making the leap without making any contact with the snapper and he offered this great quote, “Depends if you’re me or not…If you’re me, it’s another day at the office.”
Two snappers recorded tackles in punt coverage this week and both are from UCF. Charley Hughlett (Browns) and Alex Ward (Rams) each had an assisted tackle. For Ward, it was the first tackle of his career.
The NFL Long Snappers Chart after Week Seven is below.
There are two notable changes that will directly impact college and pro long snappers looking to play in the NFL in 2024.
The NFLPA Collegiate Bowl, created in 2012, will not happened this year, although it promises to return in a different format. The NFL has also made changes to the rules for conducting college all-star games that could impact the opportunities for snappers. As of now, the Senior Bowl and East-West Shrine Bowl remain the top options for senior college snappers looking to play at the next level. Other options include The College Gridiron Showcase and Hula Bowl.
Snappers have also benefited from securing game experience at professional leagues below the NFL, like the USFL and XFL. In recent years, the XFL helped launch NFL careers for Scott Daly, Nick Moore and Christian Kuntz. The USFL helped Mitchell Fraboni get to the NFL as well. These two leagues just announced they are merging. That combination, scheduled to debut in 2024, will likely reduce the number of teams, but increase and consolidate the talent.
As a result of these two important changes, the landscape for college and pro snappers with a desire to make the NFL will be different in 2024. However, despite these developments, all-star games and the newly-combined spring league remain some of the best options to impress NFL talent evaluators.
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