Rhys Lloyd
Encyclopedia
Rhys John Lloyd (born June 5, 1982 in Dover
, England
) is an American football
placekicker
for the New York Giants
of the National Football League
. He was signed by the Baltimore Ravens
as an undrafted free agent in 2005. He played college football
at Minnesota
.
Lloyd has also been a member of the Green Bay Packers
, Frankfurt Galaxy
, Carolina Panthers
, and Minnesota Vikings
.
Lloyd attended Eastview High School
in Apple Valley, Minnesota
and lettered in football and soccer. In football, as a senior, he was an All-Conference selection and an All-State selection. In soccer, he was an All-State selection.
man and punter for the Minnesota Golden Gophers
from 2003 to 2004. Rhys was also a two-time All-American placekicker for Rochester Community and Technical College. He was famous for his rugby
-style punting, amazing concentration under pressure and long-distance field goals. Teammates referred to Lloyd by the nickname "Winston Churchill
", after the British prime minister who led the United Kingdom
through World War II
. Lloyd is best remembered for a 42-yard field goal in the dying seconds of the 2003 Sun Bowl
to beat the University of Oregon
31-30.
, but had to sign as an undrafted free agent after the 2005 draft
with the Baltimore Ravens
, who released him before the start of the regular season.
; however, he was subsequently released on May 1, 2006.
of the NFL Europa in 2007. He was named the NFL Europa special teams player of the week in week 3 by tying the league record for the longest field goal in League history with a 56 yarder. Lloyd had signed with the Frankfurt Galaxy at the conclusion of NFL Europa kicking camp in Tampa, Florida. He played the 2006-2007 season in Europe and then and came back to the US.
and, subsequently, survived the Ravens final cut and signed with the team for the regular season as a kicker. He went back and forth between being on the active roster, on the practice squad, and being a free agent.
on December 26, 2007. He signed a multi-year contract with the team in 2008. The Panthers used Lloyd primarily as a kickoff specialist, with veteran placekicker John Kasay
handling the field goal duties. Lloyd led the NFL in 2008 in touchbacks on kickoffs with 30 on the season.
on March 8, 2010. This deal put him back near his alma mater Eastview High School
in Apple Valley, Minnesota
.
He was released by the Vikings on September 4, 2010.
Dover
Dover is a town and major ferry port in the home county of Kent, in South East England. It faces France across the narrowest part of the English Channel, and lies south-east of Canterbury; east of Kent's administrative capital Maidstone; and north-east along the coastline from Dungeness and Hastings...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
) is an American football
American football
American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...
placekicker
Placekicker
Placekicker, or simply kicker , is the title of the player in American and Canadian football who is responsible for the kicking duties of field goals, extra points...
for the New York Giants
New York Giants
The New York Giants are a professional American football team based in East Rutherford, New Jersey, representing the New York City metropolitan area. The Giants are currently members of the Eastern Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League...
of the National Football League
National Football League
The National Football League is the highest level of professional American football in the United States, and is considered the top professional American football league in the world. It was formed by eleven teams in 1920 as the American Professional Football Association, with the league changing...
. He was signed by the Baltimore Ravens
Baltimore Ravens
The Baltimore Ravens are a professional football franchise based in Baltimore, Maryland.The Baltimore Ravens are officially a quasi-expansion franchise, having originated in 1995 with the Cleveland Browns relocation controversy after Art Modell, then owner of the Cleveland Browns, announced his...
as an undrafted free agent in 2005. He played college football
College football
College football refers to American football played by teams of student athletes fielded by American universities, colleges, and military academies, or Canadian football played by teams of student athletes fielded by Canadian universities...
at Minnesota
Minnesota Golden Gophers football
The University of Minnesota Golden Gophers are one of the oldest programs in college football history. They compete in the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision and the Big Ten Conference. The Golden Gophers have claimed six national championships and have an all time record of 646–481–44 as...
.
Lloyd has also been a member of the Green Bay Packers
Green Bay Packers
The Green Bay Packers are an American football team based in Green Bay, Wisconsin. They are members of the North Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The Packers are the current NFL champions...
, Frankfurt Galaxy
Frankfurt Galaxy
The Frankfurt Galaxy was a professional American football team that originally played in the World League of American Football and later in the resurrected NFL Europe. The team was based in Frankfurt, Germany and played in the Commerzbank-Arena, formerly called the Waldstadion.-History:In 1991, the...
, Carolina Panthers
Carolina Panthers
The Carolina Panthers are a professional American football team based in Charlotte, North Carolina. They are currently members of the South Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The Panthers, along with the Jacksonville Jaguars, joined the NFL as expansion...
, and Minnesota Vikings
Minnesota Vikings
The Minnesota Vikings are a professional American football team based in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The Vikings joined the National Football League as an expansion team in 1960...
.
Early years
Lloyd attended Astor Secondary School in Dover (now Astor College for the Arts) before moving to the States with his parents.Lloyd attended Eastview High School
Eastview High School
Eastview High School is a comprehensive and college preparatory public high school located in Apple Valley, Minnesota, USA. Established in 1997, Eastview is the newest of the four high schools serving Independent School District 196. Newsweek ranked the school in their "List of the Top High Schools...
in Apple Valley, Minnesota
Apple Valley, Minnesota
As of the census of 2000, there were 45,527 people, 16,344 households, and 12,405 families residing in the city. The population density was 2,625.5 people per square mile . There were 16,536 housing units at an average density of 953.6 per square mile...
and lettered in football and soccer. In football, as a senior, he was an All-Conference selection and an All-State selection. In soccer, he was an All-State selection.
College career
Lloyd was the placekicker, kickoffKickoff (American football)
A kickoff is a method of starting a drive in American football and Canadian football. Typically, a kickoff consists of one team – the "kicking team" – kicking the ball to the opposing team – the "receiving team"...
man and punter for the Minnesota Golden Gophers
Minnesota Golden Gophers football
The University of Minnesota Golden Gophers are one of the oldest programs in college football history. They compete in the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision and the Big Ten Conference. The Golden Gophers have claimed six national championships and have an all time record of 646–481–44 as...
from 2003 to 2004. Rhys was also a two-time All-American placekicker for Rochester Community and Technical College. He was famous for his rugby
Rugby football
Rugby football is a style of football named after Rugby School in the United Kingdom. It is seen most prominently in two current sports, rugby league and rugby union.-History:...
-style punting, amazing concentration under pressure and long-distance field goals. Teammates referred to Lloyd by the nickname "Winston Churchill
Winston Churchill
Sir Winston Leonard Spencer-Churchill, was a predominantly Conservative British politician and statesman known for his leadership of the United Kingdom during the Second World War. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest wartime leaders of the century and served as Prime Minister twice...
", after the British prime minister who led the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
through World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. Lloyd is best remembered for a 42-yard field goal in the dying seconds of the 2003 Sun Bowl
Sun Bowl
The Sun Bowl is an annual U.S. college football bowl game that is usually played at the end of December in El Paso, Texas. The Sun Bowl, along with the Sugar Bowl and the Orange Bowl are the second-oldest bowl games in the country, behind the Rose Bowl...
to beat the University of Oregon
University of Oregon
-Colleges and schools:The University of Oregon is organized into eight schools and colleges—six professional schools and colleges, an Arts and Sciences College and an Honors College.- School of Architecture and Allied Arts :...
31-30.
Awards
- Lou Groza AwardLou Groza AwardThe Lou Groza Award is presented annually to the top college football placekicker in the United States by the Palm Beach County Sports Commission. The award is named after former Ohio State Buckeyes and Cleveland Browns player Lou Groza.-Winners:...
candidate, - Honorable-mention All-American
- Big Ten's best pressure player by Street & SmithStreet & SmithStreet & Smith or Street & Smith Publications, Inc. was a New York City publisher specializing in inexpensive paperbacks and magazines referred to as pulp fiction and dime novels. They also published comic books and sporting yearbooks...
First stint with Ravens
Lloyd entered the NFL draftNFL Draft
The National Football League Draft is an annual event in which the National Football League teams select eligible college football players and it is their most common source of player recruitment. The basic design of the draft is each team is given a position in the drafting order in reverse order...
, but had to sign as an undrafted free agent after the 2005 draft
2005 NFL Draft
The 2005 NFL Draft was the procedure by which National Football League teams selected amateur college football players. It is officially known as the NFL Annual Player Selection Meeting. The draft was held April 23–24, 2005. The league also held an supplemental draft that year, which was held after...
with the Baltimore Ravens
Baltimore Ravens
The Baltimore Ravens are a professional football franchise based in Baltimore, Maryland.The Baltimore Ravens are officially a quasi-expansion franchise, having originated in 1995 with the Cleveland Browns relocation controversy after Art Modell, then owner of the Cleveland Browns, announced his...
, who released him before the start of the regular season.
Green Bay Packers
On April 10, 2006, he was signed by the Green Bay PackersGreen Bay Packers
The Green Bay Packers are an American football team based in Green Bay, Wisconsin. They are members of the North Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The Packers are the current NFL champions...
; however, he was subsequently released on May 1, 2006.
Frankfurt Galaxy
Rhys was signed by the Frankfurt GalaxyFrankfurt Galaxy
The Frankfurt Galaxy was a professional American football team that originally played in the World League of American Football and later in the resurrected NFL Europe. The team was based in Frankfurt, Germany and played in the Commerzbank-Arena, formerly called the Waldstadion.-History:In 1991, the...
of the NFL Europa in 2007. He was named the NFL Europa special teams player of the week in week 3 by tying the league record for the longest field goal in League history with a 56 yarder. Lloyd had signed with the Frankfurt Galaxy at the conclusion of NFL Europa kicking camp in Tampa, Florida. He played the 2006-2007 season in Europe and then and came back to the US.
Second stint with Ravens
Lloyd signed with the Baltimore Ravens again as a free agent in 2007 and made an impressive 55 yard field goal in the Ravens preseason finale against AtlantaAtlanta Falcons
The Atlanta Falcons are a professional American football team based in Atlanta, Georgia. They are a member of the South Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League...
and, subsequently, survived the Ravens final cut and signed with the team for the regular season as a kicker. He went back and forth between being on the active roster, on the practice squad, and being a free agent.
Carolina Panthers
Lloyd was claimed off waivers by the Carolina PanthersCarolina Panthers
The Carolina Panthers are a professional American football team based in Charlotte, North Carolina. They are currently members of the South Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The Panthers, along with the Jacksonville Jaguars, joined the NFL as expansion...
on December 26, 2007. He signed a multi-year contract with the team in 2008. The Panthers used Lloyd primarily as a kickoff specialist, with veteran placekicker John Kasay
John Kasay
John David Kasay is an American football kicker for the New Orleans Saints of the National Football League. He was drafted by the Seattle Seahawks in the fourth round of the 1991 NFL Draft. He played college football at Georgia...
handling the field goal duties. Lloyd led the NFL in 2008 in touchbacks on kickoffs with 30 on the season.
Minnesota Vikings
Lloyd signed with the Minnesota VikingsMinnesota Vikings
The Minnesota Vikings are a professional American football team based in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The Vikings joined the National Football League as an expansion team in 1960...
on March 8, 2010. This deal put him back near his alma mater Eastview High School
Eastview High School
Eastview High School is a comprehensive and college preparatory public high school located in Apple Valley, Minnesota, USA. Established in 1997, Eastview is the newest of the four high schools serving Independent School District 196. Newsweek ranked the school in their "List of the Top High Schools...
in Apple Valley, Minnesota
Apple Valley, Minnesota
As of the census of 2000, there were 45,527 people, 16,344 households, and 12,405 families residing in the city. The population density was 2,625.5 people per square mile . There were 16,536 housing units at an average density of 953.6 per square mile...
.
He was released by the Vikings on September 4, 2010.