NFL’s love affair with Australian punters continues with Jeremy Crawshaw drafted by Denver Broncos
Seven years ago, Jeremy Crawshaw was playing under-17s park footy for the Emu Plains/Glenmore Park Junior AFL Club in western Sydney.
Crawshaw knew he had a big kick on him but thought the chance of playing professional sport had passed, with the dream of an AFL contract feeling a little out of reach.
Jeremy Crawshaw in action for the Florida Gators.Credit: Icon Sportswire via Getty Images
Now he’s on the cusp of cracking the big time in the NFL.
Crawshaw is set to join the ranks of Australian punters in the NFL after being drafted by the Denver Broncos.
Wearing a Penrith Panthers jersey, Crawshaw played for the Emu Plains Junior Rugby League Football Club during his early years.Credit: Instagram
The 23-year-old from Emu Plains in Sydney’s west was the first punter taken in the draft – going in the sixth round with pick No.216 – after being widely considered the best on offer following his five seasons with the University of Florida.
He is poised to join fellow Australian punters Tory Taylor (Chicago), Mitch Wishnowsky (San Francisco), Michael Dickson (Seattle) and Cameron Johnston (Pittsburgh) in the NFL.
Like so many kids in Sydney’s west, Crawshaw’s first love was rugby league. He grew up wanting to play first grade for the Penrith Panthers; the four-time reigning NRL premiers.
He began his sporting journey with the Emu Plains Junior Rugby League Football Club as a four-year-old and played there for “eight or nine seasons”.
“We call it rugby league back home,” Crawshaw said in a 2021 interview. “Penrith Panthers is the local professional team and I was big on trying to make the team when I was younger.
“I guess it just didn’t happen. I just went looking for other things.”
Jeremy Crawshaw plays Australian Rules Football as a junior in western Sydney. Credit: Instagram
A friend asked Crawshaw if he wanted to try Australian Rules Football, where he began honing his craft with long and accurate kicks, playing against teams like the Blue Mountains Kangaroos, Greystanes Goannas and Baulkham Hills Hawks.
From there, Crawshaw was invited to join Prokick Australia; a Melbourne-based sports academy founded in 2007 by former AFL player Nathan Chapman and John Smith.
The academy is renowned for transforming Australian athletes into elite American football punters.
“Prokick Australia gives scholarships to guys in America,” Crawshaw said last year. “I really loved the sound of that. I’d never been to America before. I jumped straight onto it. I graduated from high school and made the choice to move to Melbourne.”
Crawshaw began training four times a week at local fields in Melbourne. The shoulder pads and helmet he used were bought off eBay.
Coaches at Prokick Australia filmed Crawshaw kicking and sent the tapes to schools in the USA.
At the end of 2019, Crawshaw accepted a deal with the University of Florida, who liked what they saw from the 193-centimetre Australian with a powerful kick.
“The time I have spent at Florida has been nothing short of amazing,” Crawshaw said last year. “I’m grateful for the opportunity that they gave me to come in as a small-town Australian boy that played in front of no more than maybe 100 people, to the ‘swamp’ [where we] play in front of 90,000 to 100,000 [fans].”
Crawshaw averaged 45.8 yards for the Gators in 2024, with 25 punts downed inside the 20-yard line.
In the 2023 season, he set the single-season Gators record for punt average at 48.9 yards.
Crawshaw is set to compete with veteran punter Matt Haack for the Broncos’ starting job. Haack signed a one-year, $US1.255 million ($1.96 million) contract with the club in March.
“Crawshaw will likely move in and become an immediate NFL starter with the potential to become a genuine field-position weapon,” reads Crawshaw’s pre-draft scouting report.
“The ability to execute multiple punt styles – from traditional bombs to rugby-style rollers – gives coordinators a versatile weapon for any situation.
“With his proven track record in high-pressure SEC environments and continued development throughout his college career, Crawshaw has positioned himself as the top punter in this draft class.
“His ceiling suggests a decade-plus career as a reliable NFL punter with Pro Bowl potential.”
With AAP and Reuters
News, results and expert analysis from the weekend of sport are sent every Monday. Sign up for our Sport newsletter.