Jeremy Crawshaw, 'best punter in draft,' eager to play at mile-high elevation with Broncos
Jeremy Crawshaw, 'best punter in draft,' eager to play at mile-high elevation with Broncos
Jeremy Crawshaw has had quite the football journey.
He was born in Penrith, New South Wales, Australia, and grew up playing rugby league before later switching to Australian rules football. After high school, Crawshaw attended Nathan Chapman's ProKick Australia academy to train for American football. He committed to the University of Florida in 2019 and joined the Gators in 2020.
After five years at Florida, the 23-year-old punter was picked by the Denver Broncos in the seventh round of this year's NFL draft.
'I played a lot of sports as a kid [and] rugby was the main one," Crawshaw said in a conference call after being picked by Denver. "I switched over to the AFL, and that's kind of more kicking. Pretty much I was looking for something to do after school, played some sports and found ProKick Australia that gave me a scholarship to come over to Florida. I spent five years here and then am lucky enough to move on and be with the Denver Broncos now.'
Broncos special teams coordinator Darren Rizzi clearly had his eye on Crawshaw leading up to the draft. Rizzi, who is also listed as assistant head coach on Denver's staff, worked "pretty intently" with the punter at the Gators' pro day, Crawshaw said. Rizzi had several lunches and multiple phone calls with the punter prospect leading up to the draft.
"In regards to the punter, we felt like he's the best punter in the draft," Broncos general manager George Paton said in his post-draft press conference. "I think he was the only one drafted, but [a] big kid, athletic, grew up playing rugby and cricket. This guy's got a really big leg, and look at his growth that he's had over the last couple of years."
After averaging 47.9 yards per punt in 2022 and 48.9 yards per boot in 2023, Crawshaw's average dipped to 45.7 last fall, but Denver's staff doesn't seem concerned about it.
"The net wasn't as high as this year but in the past, we feel like he can do everything: punt for distance, directionally, controlled hang, really good holder, good teammate," Paton said. "We feel really strong about him.'
In addition to punting duties, Crawshaw is poised to take over as the team's now holder for field goals and extra points after the team lost Riley Dixon during NFL free agency.
'I love holding," Crawshaw said. "It's a nice chemistry between me, and the kicker and snapper. You work together a lot every day. I love holding. It's one of those things that I never shied away from. I got into it straight away. [Cincinnati Bengals kicker] Evan McPherson taught me a lot of things in regards to holding that I learned from him and implemented over the years. Holding is no issues, and I love doing it.'
Now in Denver, Crawshaw will get to live out a punter's dream of kicking at a mile-high elevation.
"Punters and kickers, specialists, we love altitude," he said. "So always good to get up a little higher."
He will also team up with fellow Australian Thomas Yassmin, a developmental tight end who is with the Broncos as part of the NFL's International Player Pathway program.
'I didn't know that until just a minute ago, but I love the idea of being on a team with another Aussie as well, a familiar accent," Crawshaw said. "I'm sure we'll get along.'
Crawshaw (6-4, 198 pounds) seems poised to take over the team's punting duties, but the job won't be handed to him. The Broncos signed Matt Haack after losing Dixon, and the veteran is set to compete with the incoming rookie this summer.
'Coming in, I'm excited to just compete [and] go against some other people with great talent," Crawshaw said. "Matt Haack has already been in the league for a long time, and I've watched a lot of film on him. I'm kind of just looking forward to competing. It will just be a bit of fun.'
A bit of fun, indeed. May the best leg win.
Related: These 25 celebrities are Broncos fans.
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