Athletes - Ben Graham

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	Athletes - Ben Graham

Ben Graham (born November 2, 1973) is a former Australian rules football player and currently on the roster of the New York Jets National Football League (NFL) team.

AFL career

Graham was recruited from the Geelong U19s with pick 40 in the 1992 Australian Football League (AFL) pre-season draft. He was Geelong's "Best first year player" in the reserves team of 1992, and made his debut with the Geelong seniors late in 1993.

Graham was noted for his long kicking (in particular his expertise at the torpedo punt), and could play at both ends of the ground as a key position player. He played at centre half-forward and could convert goals from distances of 60 metres, and also at centre half-back, where his booming kicks cleared the ball from defence, particularly during kickouts.

Graham went on to play 219 games for the Geelong Football Club in the Australian Football League from 1993 to 2004. He captained the side from 2000 to 2002, and won the club's Best and Fairest award (the Carji Greeves Medal) in 1999. Graham was renowned for his long, accurate kicking, and in 2004 he surprised many in Australia when he retired from Australian rules football to pursue a career as a punter in the United States National Football League. He had first been approached by the New York Jets in 1997 to try out as a punter, but decided to stay in the AFL.

NFL career

Graham was signed to a short-term contract by the New York Jets in January 2005. Graham moved to New York City and attended Jets training camp at Hofstra University, before being confirmed as the team's starting punter for the 2005 NFL season when his predecessor Micah Knorr was released . When Graham played his first NFL regular season game, he became the second person after Darren Bennett to play in both the AFL and the NFL, and third Australian NFL player. He also became the oldest rookie ever to be part of an NFL opening day roster at age 31.

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