Eagles Bring Back Punter Mat McBriar, Release Chas Henry

The Philadelphia Eagles today announced they have signed P Mat McBriar to a two-year contract and released P Chas Henry. The team also signed LS Kyle Nelson to the practice squad and released WR Jeremy Ebert from the practice squad.

The 33-year old native of Australia earned two Pro Bowl selections during an eight-year career with the Dallas Cowboys from 2004-11.  He has punted 494 times for 22,369 yards for a 45.3 career average, which ranks 5th in NFL history. McBriar’s career net average is 38.4 yards and he has downed 175 punts inside the opponents’ 20-yard line.

McBriar (6-0, 227) earned All-Pro and Pro Bowl honors with the Cowboys following the 2006 and 2010 campaigns, becoming just the 2nd native of Australia to earn that distinction (Darren Bennett was the other). In 2006, his league-leading 48.2-yard average was the first 48+-yard average by an NFL punter since 1963. He also led the league in punting average (47.9) and net punting average (41.7) in 2010. Originally a rookie free agent signing by Denver in 2003, McBriar was traded to Seattle later that year during the preseason. He eventually landed on the Cowboys practice squad on December 26, 2003. A former Australian rules football player, McBriar enrolled at the University of Hawaii, where he earned All-WAC honors as a senior with a 44.8-yard average.

Nelson (6-3, 240) spent the 2012 offseason as a member of the San Francisco 49ers but was released as part of the team’s final roster cut down. He originally signed with the New Orleans Saints as a rookie free agent in 2011 and had a brief stint on the Kansas City Chiefs practice squad. A native of Waco, TX, Nelson played in 50 games as a tight end at New Mexico State, catching 66 passes for 559 yards and two touchdowns.

McBriar will wear #1 and Nelson will wear #85