| No. 10, 9, 18, 12, 14 | |||||
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| Position | Placekicker | ||||
| Personal information | |||||
| Born | (1972-08-13)August 13, 1972 (age 53) Bakersfield, California, U.S. | ||||
| Height | 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) | ||||
| Weight | 185 lb (84 kg) | ||||
| Career information | |||||
| High school | Bakersfield (CA) Foothill | ||||
| College | Arizona State | ||||
| NFL draft | 1995: undrafted | ||||
| Career history | |||||
* Offseason and/or practice squad member only | |||||
| Awards and highlights | |||||
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| Career NFL statistics | |||||
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| Career CFL statistics | |||||
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Jonathan David Baker (born August 13, 1972) is an American former professionalfootballplacekicker in theNational Football League (NFL) for theDallas Cowboys andKansas City Chiefs. He also was a member of theEdmonton Eskimos andBC Lions of theCanadian Football League (CFL). He playedcollege football atArizona State University.
Baker attendedFoothill High School, where helettered in football,soccer,track andbasketball. In football, he was a two-time All-South Yosemite League selection, playing at kicker andquarterback.
He enrolled atBakersfield Community College.[1][2] As a freshman, he made 2 field goals of over 50 yards and hit a game winner with 0:01 seconds left.[3]
Baker transferred toArizona State University after his sophomore season. As a junior, he began kicking barefoot. He made 18-of-26 field goals and 26-of-26 point after attempts for 80 points.
As a senior, he made 17-of-24 field goals and 23-of-24 extra point attempts for 74 points. He received Pac-10 Special Teams Player of the Week twice. He made 3 field goals in a game three times. At the time, onlyLuis Zendejas had made more field goals in a season for Arizona State than Baker.
Baker was signed as anundrafted free agent by theDallas Cowboys after the1995 NFL draft. AfterplacekickerChris Boniol missed the first three preseason games with a pulled quadriceps in his right leg, the Cowboys were forced to make the unconventional move of keeping Baker as a kickoff specialist.[4] He played in three games and was released on September 19.[5]
On May 16,1996, he signed as afree agent with theSan Francisco 49ers.[6] He was cut on July 18.[7] On April 2,1997, he was re-signed by the 49ers.[8] He was limited with groin and heel injuries. On August 15, he was released after not being able to passGary Anderson on the depth chart.[9]
On February 18,1998, he was signed by theMiami Dolphins and allocated to theScottish Claymores ofNFL Europe.[10] He made 6-of-7 field goals, while the extra points were kicked by Scottishrugby player Gary Parker.[11] He was released by the Dolphins before the start of the season on August 8.[12]
In1999, he played in eight games with theEdmonton Eskimos of theCanadian Football League.[13] He made 20-of-28 field-goal attempts and led the league with a 60.5-yard average per kickoff. He was released to make room forSean Fleming, who returned from theKansas City Chiefs of theNFL.
On December 21,1999, he was signed as afree agent by the Chiefs, to be the team's kickoff specialist.[14] He hit 3 kickoffs out of bounds in the season finale against theOakland Raiders, which contributed to a 41–38 overtime loss.[15] A win would have given the Chiefs the AFC West championship and a playoff berth. He wasn't re-signed after the season.
In June2000, he signed with theB.C. Lions of the CFL, handling the kickoffs and long range field goals, whileLui Passaglia attempted most of the field goal.[16] He played in five games, until being released to make room forplacekickerDan Giancola on August 9.[17]
On October 22, 2001, he signed with the Eskimos to replace an injuredSean Fleming.[18] He played in one game, missing one field goal and had another one blocked. He was released on October 28.[19]
On May 23,2002, he was signed by theBakersfield Blitz of theaf2.[20] In2003, he set a league regular season record with a 54-yard field goal.[21]