Special teams unit was least of Dallas’ woes in 2023

2024 Roster Review: Special Teams – Part 17 of 17. Click here to view all articles in this series.

If there was one area on the Dallas Cowboys roster in 2023 that was absolutely worry-free it was the special teams.

Beginning with the surprising season put in by Brandon Aubrey. All he managed to do was set a new NFL record for kicking field goals.

Punter Bryan Anger had career-bests in yards per punt (51.4) and new yards per punt (45.3).

The man in the middle, long snapper Trent Sieg, was solid as well, helping his two kicking specialists with near flowless snaps every time.

About the only problem special teams had in 2023 was Sam Williams’ propensity for doing something stupid.

He extended the opponents’ drives with more than one dumb penalty.

Brandon Aubrey

The Cowboys came into the 2023 season with a huge question mark hovering overhead regarding their place kicking.

They don’t have that issue in 2024.

After Brett Maher’s playoff meltdown at the end of the 2022 season Dallas went looking for a kicker. They decided upon Aubrey.

The kicker for two USFL championship teams in Birmingham, and who played at Notre Dame, had some shaky moments in training camp.

On a rainy night in New Jersey, he missed his first kick – an extra point try. Cowboys fans were thinking Maher 2.0.

He wouldn’t miss another kick for the next two months.

Aubrey would hit his next 29 extra point attempts. At the same time he made all 21 of his field goal attempts.

And they weren’t all just chip shots.

He was bombing in kicks of 50 yards and more.

His longest of the year was a 60-yarder. Against the Eagles at AT&T Stadium back in December he hit on kicks of 60, 59, 45, and 50 yards.

He earned the nickname of “Brandon Aubreymatic” along the way.

In the last game of October, against the Rams, Aubrey broke the NFL record of 18 straight field goals made without a miss. Cleveland’s Travis Coons set the mark in 2015.

He extended the record to 35 in a row before a 32-yard field goal in the season finale against Washington was blocked.

He ended the year 36-of-38 in field goals and 49-of-52 in extra points.

Aubrey is under contract through the end of the 2025 season before becoming a restricted free agent in 2026. Suffice to say, Dallas will not be in the market for a place kicker anytime soon.

Bryan Anger

Anger will turn 36 this October in his 12th NFL season.

His best three years have all come since his arrival in Dallas back in 2021. As mentioned above, he had career bests in average yardage.

He was voted into the Pro Bowl for the second time.

The first time came in 2021 – his first year in Dallas.

Anger has been solid as the Cowboys’ punter and likely will remain so. He is under contract for 2024 and will become a free agent after the upcoming season ends.

Trent Sieg

The Cowboys signed Sieg to a one-year contract last year.

After a four-year run with the Raiders, Sieg rewarded Dallas with a solid year as the team’s long snapper. He was a free agent until earlier this week.

Without going back and watching every snap of the 2023 season, I can’t recall a single bad snap from Sieg that put his kickers in a bad position.

Back in the early 1970s, the Cowboys had a center named Dave Manders. Manders also did all the long-snapping duties.

He had the position down to such a science that he knew exactly how to snap the ball so that it hit the holder in the hands with the laces out every time.

Then owner Clint Murchison low-balled Manders contract and had to nearly be brow-beaten to give Manders a $500 raise.

Current owner Jerry Jones didn’t make the same mistake. The Cowboys have a good one right now and signed Sieg to a one-year deal on Tuesday.