XFL DC Defenders Hunter Niswander signs with the Dallas Cowboys

Hunter Niswander
XFL DC Defenders punter/kicker Hunter Niswander has signed onto the Dallas Cowboys practice squad.

This afternoon former DC Defenders punter/kicker Hunter Niswander signed a deal with the Dallas Cowboys. Niswander will be a member of the Cowboys practice squad.

In the XFL as a Defender, Niswander was listed as a kicker and a punter. On his 21 punts, he finished second in the league on average yards per punt with 44.6. Niswander only recorded two touchbacks, along with eight of his punts pinning opponents inside the 20.

Niswander was listed as a kicker.  However, prior to the season the Defenders signed Tyler Rausa as a kicker, which left Niswander still handling kickoffs. The former Defender punter kicked off 21 times, none of which resulted in a penalty.

College Background

Niswander punted at Northwestern University, where he was a three starter as a Husky.

He punted for a total of 230 times, averaging 40.4 yards per punt. In his senior year, he averaged an even 43.0 average per punt on his 67 attempts.

Why Niswander will help the Cowboys

The way the COVID rule can go into effect and knock your kick or punter out for a week, it is an excellent move for the Cowboys to sign Niswander. The Cowboys offer Greg Zuerlein at kicker and Chris Jones at punter. Playing behind two of the best in the game, Niswander can improve his already excellent skills even more.

Niswander is a true swiss army knife as a specialist, not many can kickoff, punt, kick field goals, and do all three of those very well. Typically it is just one of the three, maybe two if you are lucky.

Be sure to watch out for the big 6’5, 230 lb punter. The tall and strong specialists are starting to seem like the hot commodity in the NFL.

1 thought on “XFL DC Defenders Hunter Niswander signs with the Dallas Cowboys”

  1. Moose, as an FYI, Northwestern University’s mascot is not a Husky. It is a Wildcat. You might be confusing Northwestern with Northern Illinois University. They are the Huskies. Thanks.

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