If you know at least a little bit about the Cowboys, you’re probably aware that their kicker didn’t get to the NFL through the front door. Instead, Brandon Aubrey started as a soccer star in Plano, making it all the way to Major League Soccer before washing out after two seasons. Then he came home to work as a software engineer while embarking on a longest-odds quest to become a kicker, never mind that he hadn’t kicked in a football game since middle school. It’s wild.
Again, though, you probably know some version of all of that. I am here to tell you three more things. First, I profiled Brandon for our August issue, in a story that’s now online. I had a lot of fun writing and reporting it, and I bet you’ll have plenty of fun reading it, too. Second, however well you think you know his story, you don’t. There’s even more to it, and it’s crazier than even I realized going in. Put bluntly, if one of a half-dozen or so different things breaks differently, he’s just another software engineer in Arlington whose name you’ve never heard.
But I want to talk about the third thing. This story is about Aubrey’s wife, Jenn, as much as Brandon. Because the man himself will tell you, he’s not doing this if it isn’t for her. For starters, she gave him the idea to try kicking in the first place. But as you’ll see in the piece, it runs a lot deeper than that. As I told my StrongSide: The Show cohost Mike Marshall today, everyone deserves someone in their life who believes in them as much as Jenn Aubrey believes in Brandon Aubrey. I hope you enjoy reading their story.
NFL kicker Daniel Carlson in a white long-sleeve shirt, holding a football with both hands while standing between yellow goalposts under a cloudy sky. He gazes off to the side with a focused expression.