Jeff Locke (American football) explained

Jeff Locke
Number:12, 18, 2
Position:Punter
Birth Date:September 27, 1989
Birth Place:Frankfurt, West Germany
High School:Mountain Ridge
(Glendale, Arizona)
Height Ft:6
Height In:0
Weight Lbs:194
College:UCLA
Draftyear:2013
Draftround:5
Draftpick:155
Pastteams:
Highlights:
Statlabel1:Punts
Statvalue1:317
Statlabel2:Punting yards
Statvalue2:13,757
Statlabel3:Punt average
Statvalue3:43.4
Statlabel6:Longest punt
Statvalue6:72
Statlabel7:Inside 20
Statvalue7:112
Pfr:LockJe00

Jeffrey Ryan Locke (born September 27, 1989) is a former American football punter. He played college football at UCLA, and was selected by the Minnesota Vikings in the fifth round of the 2013 NFL draft.

Early life

Locke attended Mountain Ridge High School in Glendale, Arizona, where he played football as a punter, kicker, and wide receiver. As a senior, Locke averaged 43.6 yards on 38 punts with 10 inside the 20-yard line, kicked 47 touchbacks on 54 kickoffs, converted 29 of 32 extra point attempts, and made 11 of 20 field goals. He set school records for most field goals in a season (11), longest punt (71 yards), and longest field goal (63 yards, a state record).[1] For his efforts, Locke was ranked No. 1 kicker by ESPN.com and No. 1 nationally at punter by scout.com.

College career

thumb|left|Locke punting at the Rose Bowl in 2010.Locke attended the University of California, Los Angeles and played for the UCLA Bruins football team from 2008 to 2012. He did not see action in his first year but later became UCLA's starting punter and kickoff specialist for four seasons. He made 53 career starts with a punting average of 44.23, No. 2 in UCLA history. Locke also had a 42.54% touchback rate on kickoffs. In 2011, Locke took over for field goal and extra point duties in a few games following an injury to UCLA's starting placekicker. He went 2–3 on field goals, connecting from 49 and 51 as well as converting 6 of 9 extra point attempts. In his senior year, Locke was named first-team All-Pac-12, earned first-team all-conference academic team honors, selected to play in the Senior Bowl college all-star game, and earned the Captain's Award.

Professional career

Minnesota Vikings

thumb|right|Locke signing autographs at the Vikings' training camp in 2014 with placekicker Blair Walsh.Following a successful collegiate career, Locke was drafted in the fifth round of the 2013 NFL Draft by the Minnesota Vikings.[2] This made Locke the highest-picked punter in franchise history. NFL senior analyst Gil Brandt said that Locke, a left-footed punter, "is every bit as good as Bryan Anger," the punter selected in the third round by the Jacksonville Jaguars in the 2012 NFL draft.[3] Locke was also noted for his kickoff abilities, having led the NCAA in touchbacks his senior year.

After competing with the Vikings' then current punter, veteran Chris Kluwe (8 seasons), Locke earned the starting job as Kluwe was released on May 6, 2013.[4] It is speculated that this move was made in order to make more room for the salary cap, as Kluwe was due 1.45 million in 2013. For the start of his rookie season, Locke wore number 12 until Week 5 when the Vikings signed quarterback Josh Freeman. Locke agreed to give his number 12 to Freeman and switched to number 18 and wore it for the next three seasons.

Indianapolis Colts

On March 10, 2017, Locke signed with the Indianapolis Colts.[5] On August 28, 2017, Locke was released by the Colts after losing the starting job to rookie Rigoberto Sanchez.[6]

Detroit Lions

On September 12, 2017, Locke signed with the Detroit Lions after an injury to Kasey Redfern, who was signed to replace Sam Martin.[7] On October 24, 2017, Locke was released by the Lions after Martin returned to practice .[8]

San Francisco 49ers

On March 12, 2018, Locke signed with the San Francisco 49ers.[9] He was released on August 31, 2018.[10]

Arizona Hotshots

On January 20, 2019, Locke signed with the Arizona Hotshots of the Alliance of American Football.[11] The league ceased operations in April 2019.[12]

NFL career statistics

Regular season

YearTeamPunting
Punts
MIN16 75 3,316 2,938 65 44.2 39.2 0 23 3
MIN16 75 3,318 2,943 62 44.2 38.7 1 21 6
MIN16 66 2,746 2,494 61 41.6 37.8 0 23 5
MIN16 74 3,155 2,886 72 42.6 39.0 0 34 3
DET5 27 1,222 1,140 54 45.3 42.2 0 11 0
Career 69 317 13,757 12,401 72 43.4 39.0 1 112 17

Playoffs

Personal life

Locke "got hooked on punting" after attending a camp run by former NFL punter Ray Guy when he was in high school.[13] He listed former NFL punter Daniel Sepulveda as one of the players he most admired.

Locke graduated from UCLA with a grade-point average of 3.885 and a bachelor's degree in economics. While at school, he spent some of his time researching athletic scholarships and helped his teammates set up personal budgets.[14]

External links

Notes and References

  1. http://www.uclabruins.com/ViewArticle.dbml?ATCLID=207919804 Jeff Locke Bio – UCLA Official Athletic Site
  2. http://www.latimes.com/sports/sportsnow/la-sp-sn-nfl-draft-jeff-locke-ucla-20130427,0,1741817.story UCLA punter Jeff Locke taken by Vikings in fifth round of draft – Los Angeles Times
  3. Web site: UCLA's Jonathan Franklin has outstanding pro day . Brandt . Gil . NFL.com . March 14, 2013 . December 26, 2015.
  4. Web site: Chris Kluwe cut by Vikings . Seifert . Kevin . ESPN.com . May 6, 2013 . December 26, 2015.
  5. Web site: Meet Pat McAfee's Replacement: New Colts Punter Jeff Locke. https://web.archive.org/web/20171022075119/http://www.colts.com/news/article-1/Meet-Pat-McAfees-Replacement-New-Colts-Punter-Jeff-Locke/6e2beeb2-eca1-4980-a2f7-9161278304ee. dead. October 22, 2017. Bowen, Kevin. Colts.com. March 10, 2017.
  6. Web site: Roster Move: Indianapolis Colts Release P-Jeff Locke. https://web.archive.org/web/20171030091152/http://www.colts.com/news/article-1/Roster-Move-Indianapolis-Colts-Release-P-Jeff-Locke/3be4a953-16c0-41c3-a47d-3f4be407a965. dead. October 30, 2017. Colts.com. August 28, 2017.
  7. Web site: Lions sign P Jeff Locke and T Emmett Cleary. https://web.archive.org/web/20180624055449/http://www.detroitlions.com/news/news-short/article-1/Lions-sign-P-Jeff-Locke-and-T-Emmett-Cleary/448d6eb8-6a13-445c-93a7-93371411f03a. dead. June 24, 2018. DetroitLions.com. September 12, 2017.
  8. Web site: Lions release Jeff Locke. Alper, Josh. ProFootballTalk.NBCSports.com. October 24, 2017.
  9. Web site: 49ers Announce a Pair of Roster Moves. https://web.archive.org/web/20180315202829/http://www.49ers.com/news/article-2/49ers-Announce-a-Pair-of-Roster-Moves/c22fd2b8-acae-452c-ae4e-276a1685a4da. dead. March 15, 2018. 49ers.com. March 12, 2018. March 12, 2018.
  10. Web site: 49ers Trade for OL Shon Coleman, Cut 12 Players. 49ers.com. August 31, 2018.
  11. Web site: Arizona Hotshots Daily Update: Tuesday, January 22, 2019. Our Sports Central. January 22, 2019. February 5, 2019.
  12. Web site: Rothstein . Michael . Wickersham . Seth . June 13, 2019 . Inside the short, unhappy life of the Alliance of American Football . January 9, 2024 . ESPN.com.
  13. jefflocke18 . Jeff Locke . 630168581599309824 . August 8, 2015 . The one and only Ray Guy! Got hooked on punting after attending a camp he ran in HS .
  14. News: Ben . Goessling . Minnesota Vikings' new punter Jeff Locke a social crusader in his own right . Twin Cities . Twin Cities Sports . Minneapolis . May 23, 2013 . December 16, 2015 .