Johnny Hekker
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Hekker in 2016 | |||||||||||
| No. 6 Los Angeles Rams | |||||||||||
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| Position: | Punter | ||||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||||
| Date of birth: | February 8, 1990 | ||||||||||
| Place of birth: | Redman, Washington | ||||||||||
| Height: | 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) | ||||||||||
| Weight: | 225 lb (102 kg) | ||||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||||
| High school: | Bothell (WA) | ||||||||||
| College: | Oregon State | ||||||||||
| Undrafted: | 2012 | ||||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||||
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| Roster status: | Active | ||||||||||
| Career highlights and awards | |||||||||||
| Career NFL statistics as of Week 11, 2016 | |||||||||||
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John Robert Hekker (born February 8, 1990), is an American football punter for the Los Angeles Rams of the National Football League (NFL). He was signed by the Rams as an undrafted free agent in 2012. He played college football at Oregon State.
Early years
Hekker attended Bothell High School in Bothell, Washington and graduated in 2008. Hekker was the starting quarterback of the football team during his junior and senior year.
College
Hekker played for the Oregon State Beavers football team while attending Oregon State University. He was a four-year starter and finished his college career as one of Oregon State's most prolific punters. As a Beaver, he set a single-game school record with a 52.5 average (6 punts for 315 yards) against Utah in 2011.
Hekker ranked third-best in career-punt yardage at OSU with a solid 41.3 yards average per punt. In 2011 he earned College Football Performance Award Punter of the Week and was named to the Ray Guy Award Watch List - given annually to the nation's best punter. In 2009 he was semi-finalist for the Ray Guy Award and the Phil Steele All-Pac-10 Second Team. As a senior, Hekker recorded a total of 52 career punts over 50 yards, including 17 when he had six different games with at least one punt of 60+ yards.
Hekker earned Pac-12 Conference Honorable Mention with 87 career punts downed inside the 20-yard line in 2011. He also had at least one punt of 50+ yards in every game but one in 2010. In 2008, Hekker was named the Sun Bowl Special Teams MVP after averaging 45 yards on 10 punts, including boots of 57 and 52 yards in the fourth quarter of a 3-0 win for the Beavers.
Hekker had several memorable kicks as a Beaver. One was the second-longest punt in OSU history - 74 yards in 2010 vs. USC. Another was a negative-yardage punt when he shanked the ball for a loss of 4 yards.[1]
For 3 years, Hekker also worked as the holder on placekicks.
Professional career
St. Louis / Los Angeles Rams
2012 season
In 2012, He was signed with the St. Louis Rams as an undrafted free agent.
In Week 2, He was nominated for Pepsi NFL Rookie of the Week after recording 3 punts, 165 yards and a 48.7 net punt average, with the longest punt being 66 yards.[2]
In Week 4 against the Seattle Seahawks, Hekker threw a 2-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Danny Amendola on a fake field goal. He became the first Rams punter to throw a touchdown pass since the merger.[3]
In Week 5 against the Arizona Cardinals, He set a Rams franchise record with a gross punting average of 56.9 in one game, beating the old mark of 56.0 set by Donnie Jones on three other occasions. He recorded 7 punts for 398 yards in the game, placing three of his punts inside the opponent's 20-yard line. He had two punts of 60 plus yards.[4] In doing so, he stopped Patrick Peterson from returning a punt for a touchdown against St. Louis, as he did in both rivalry games last season. Hekker was again nominated for Pepsi NFL Rookie of the Week.
In Week 10 against the San Francisco 49ers, Hekker converted on 2 fake punt passes for 40 yards, while having 4 punts with a 31-yard average and placing one of his punts inside the opponent's 20-yard line in a 24-all draw. Hekker was again nominated for Pepsi NFL Rookie of the Week.[5]
2013 season
On December 29, 2013, Hekker officially broke the single season record for net punt yards (44.2), previously held by Andy Lee (44).[6]
2014 season
On October 19, 2014, Hekker threw a pass to running back Benny Cunningham on a fake punt with 1:14 left in a game against the Seattle Seahawks.[7]
On December 5, 2014, Hekker agreed to a 6-year, $18 million contact extension with the St. Louis Rams, $9 Million of which was guaranteed. This is the largest contract ever given to a punter.
2015 season
On December 27, 2015, early in the second quarter of a game between the St. Louis Rams and Seattle Seahawks, Hekker was penalized 15 yards for unnecessary roughness for shoving Cliff Avril after a 45-yard punt. Later in the game, Hekker dropped to the ground when he thought Michael Bennett was going to hit him as retaliation. Bennett later said that Hekker acted "like a little girl" in a post game interview.[8]
References
- ↑ John Hekker's negative yard punt by Oregon state vs Wisconsin
- ↑ John Hekker's 66-yard punt
- ↑ Punter John Hekker to Amendola on a 4th down conversion
- ↑ Week 5 Pepsi NFL Rookie of the Week Nominees
- ↑ Week 10 Pepsi NFL Rookie of the Week Nominees
- ↑ Miklasz, Bernie (30 December 2013). "Hekker sets NFL punting record". St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Retrieved 4 January 2014.
- ↑ Seattle Times staff (October 19, 2014). "Johnny Hekker pass on fake punt keeps Seahawks offense off the field". The Seattle Times. Retrieved October 20, 2014.
- ↑ Gordon Dixon/Larry Brown (Dec 27, 2015). "Seahawks say Rams' punter Johnny Hekker acted 'like little girl'". Yardbarker. Retrieved Dec 27, 2015.