What was billed as an exciting 2023 Week 14 Sunday Night Football showdown became one-sided as the Dallas Cowboys dominated the Philadelphia Eagles, 33-13. While the Dallas offense and defense deserve credit in the rout, Brandon Aubrey is the show's star.
The former Major League Soccer and United States Football League player scored 15 of Dallas’ 33 points courtesy of three extra points and four field goals. They were not just any conversions because two of his field goals etched his name in the NFL record book.
He converted on a 60-yard field goal to put Dallas up 10-0 with 50 seconds left in the first quarter. In the third quarter, he drilled a 59-yard try to extend the Cowboys lead to 14, 27-13. Those two kicks made him the first placekicker in NFL history to hit two field goals from at least 59 yards away in the same game.
Cowboys K Brandon Aubrey has hit a field goal tonight from 60 YDS and 59 YDS out
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) December 11, 2023
He's the first kicker in NFL history to hit 2 FGs from 59+ YDS out in the same game... pic.twitter.com/8xjjIv7SI1
The former Notre Dame soccer standout followed up those conversions with field goal kicks from 45 and 50 yards to settle the final score. Aside from achieving that historic feat, he remains perfect in the season with 30 field goal conversions in as many attempts as of Week 14.
Being the Cowboys’ placekicker wouldn’t have happened if the USFL’s Birmingham Stallions didn’t terminate his contract last July. Dallas didn’t waste any time signing him, and the rest is history. He converted two field goals and four extra points during his NFL debut against the New York Giants.
He became the NFC Special Teams Player of the Week when he scored 11 points against the Los Angeles Rams in Week 8. Aubrey also became the conference’s Special Teams Player of the Month for October 2023. Coincidentally, he set the record for most consecutive field goals made to start a career (19) in Week 9 against the Eagles.
With the Cowboys tied with the Eagles and the San Francisco 49ers at the top of the NFC team standings, every point counts from this point forward. Dallas will have an edge with their placekicker, who worked as a software engineer before joining the USFL. The Cowboys could also explore his wide receiver skills, given he played the position in middle school.
-Lance Fernandez