'Heart goes out to him': Big fear for 'stud' recruit; rookie's 'perfect ...

Week 1 of the new NFL season is just about in the books, and there were mixed fortunes for our Aussie punters, with one likely to miss the rest of the season.

A Ravens offensive lineman was thrown in the fire but struggled against the Super Bowl champs while a stud Aussie put together another strong game in a historic first for the NFL.

Read on for how all the Australians in the NFL fared in Week 1!

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Jordan Mailata (Philadelphia Eagles – Offensive Lineman)

The Eagles recorded a come-from-behind win over the Green Bay Packers in Brazil with Mailata one of the big reasons why.

Named a captain for the first time this offseason, Mailata anchored an offensive line that had 144 rushing yards and only allowed quarterback Jalen Hurts to be sacked twice.

According to Pro Football Focus, Mailata had the fifth-highest rating of the 46 Eagles that took the field against Green Bay.

Mailata also showed off his rugby league chops in the win when tackling a Packers defender.

After Hurts was intercepted by Packers defensive back Xavier McKinney, Mailata tracked the much quicker McKinney and made a textbook touchdown-saving tackle around the legs.

There’s no doubt Mailata’s first rugby league coach would be smiling watching that.

Tory Taylor (Chicago Bears)

One of the most promising punting prospects in years, Taylor was as good as advertised in his NFL debut.

Fellow rookie and No. 1 pick Caleb Williams quipped after the draft that Taylor wouldn’t have to worry about punting too much this season, predicting the Bears offence will hit the ground running.

They did anything but that in the season opener against the Tennessee Titans, with Taylor seeing the field early and often as the Bears fell into a 17-3 hole.

The highlight of the game for Taylor was a booming 60 yard punt in the third quarter which helped turned the contest in Chicago’s favour.

With the Bears trailing 17-3, Taylor’s punt pinned the Titans at their own 23.

In the ensuing drive, the Bears blocked a punt and returned it for a touchdown, sparking the 21-0 run they needed to win the game.

Taylor finished his debut with six punts and a league-leading three inside 20s.

One Bears pundit labelled Taylor’s game as “perfect”.

Cam Johnston (Pittsburgh Steelers – Punter)

Johnston signed with the Steelers in free agency after three seasons as a Houston Texan.

Johnston was labelled by one Steelers pundit as “the single biggest upgrade the team made compared to his replacement”, but unfortunately, the Aussie’s debut game as a Steeler ended prematurely.

In the act of punting in the fourth quarter, Johnston was hit in the leg by an Atlanta Falcons defender and had to be carted off the field.

The Steelers were pretty unlucky not to be given a penalty for a late hit on Johnston, and now they’ve likely lost their starting punter for the year.

Speaking after the game, Steelers coach Mike Tomlin said Johnston’s injury appeared to be “serious”.

“From a health standpoint you know Cam Johnston appears to have a serious injury,” Tomlin told reporters.

“I’ll have an update for you next time we come together. It’s a shame for him.

“This guy has been spectacular man through team development. He’s an absolute stud not only in his talents but his approach to business and so my heart goes out to him.”

Before the injury, Johnston had punted twice, averaging over 50 yards a kick and recording one inside 20.

ATLANTA, GA SEPTEMBER 08: Injured Pittsburgh punter Cameron Johnston (5) leaves the field in a cart during the NFL game between the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Atlanta Falcons on September 8th, 2024 at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, GA. (Photo by Rich von Biberstein/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)Source: Getty Images

Daniel Faalele (Baltimore Ravens – Offensive Lineman)

The Ravens started Faalele at guard in the NFL season opener against the defending champion Chiefs.

Unfortunately, Faalele struggled mightily against a talented Chiefs defensive line.

Faalele allowed a team-high six pass pressures from 52 pass blocking plays.

The 24-year-old has played both guard and offensive tackle since entering the league as a very raw product in 2022.

With veteran Morgan Moses leaving in free agency, Faalele earned the chance to start the season at right guard following a strong offseason.

However, it’s been a shaky start.

There’s still plenty of improvement in Faalele and of course he’s still in the very early stages of his gridiron career, but another performance like the one he had against the Chiefs, and he’ll find himself back on the bench.

Matthew Hayball (New Orleans Saints – Punter)

The undrafted rookie and former AFL draft pick in 2015 beat out fellow Aussie Lou Hedley in the pre-season for the Saints’ starting punter job.

In his official NFL debut game, Hayball wasn’t really needed, with the Saints’ offence more or less playing a perfect game.

New Orleans only punted twice, and both times, Hayball had short fields to work with, meaning accuracy was more important than length.

The 27-year-old had two punts, pinning Carolina inside their own 20 in one of those.

A solid start to Hayball’s NFL career.

Saints punter Matthew Hayball (#43) in action during the pre-season. (Getty Images via AFP)Source: AFP

Michael Dickson (Seattle Seahawks – Punter)

The 28-year-old once again enters another NFL season as one of the leading punters in the league.

He was sound against the Broncos in Week 1, kicking five times and resulting in a strong average of 48.2 yards per punt.

All of his kicks came in Seattle’s own half, and all of those heaped some pressure on the Broncos,

No blemishes from Dickson and the type of performance we’ve come to expect from the Sydney product.

Mitch Wishnowsky (San Francisco 49ers – Punter)

His season is yet to get underway, with the defending NFC champion 49ers to play the New York Jets on Tuesday morning.