The Cowboys’ No. 2 has been worn by a long list of players, but the one who stands out most is Brett Maher.
Dallas has cycled through kickers, punters, a quarterback, a cornerback and even KaVontae Turpin in the number over the years. Jourdan Lewis wore it longer than anyone else on the list, from 2022 to 2024, after earlier using Nos. 27 and 26.
Lin Elliott also had a case after finishing sixth in the 1992 Offensive Rookie of the Year voting during the Cowboys’ first of three Super Bowl runs in four seasons. Greg Zuerlein got consideration too.
None of them ended up as the pick.
Maher got the nod because, even with the accuracy swings that made him a nerve-rattler for Cowboys fans, his leg was special. He became the first kicker in NFL history with two field goals of 62 yards or longer in a career, and his path to that achievement was anything but straightforward.
After going undrafted out of Nebraska in 2013, Maher signed with the Jets, only to be cut before training camp. The Cowboys brought him in next, then moved on from him after just two weeks.
He spent several seasons in the CFL, resurfaced with the Browns in March 2017, and was cut again in early May. A strong 2017 season with the Ottawa Redblacks brought him back into the NFL picture, and Dallas gave him another shot in 2018.
That second Cowboys stint is where No. 2 really made its mark. After a solid preseason, Dallas cut Dan Bailey and handed Maher the job.
He made 80.6 percent of his field goals that year and was twice named NFC Special Teams Player of the Week. In a Week 14 win over the Eagles, he drilled a 62-yard field goal as the first-half clock expired, which was then the longest kick in Cowboys history and tied for the third-longest in NFL history.
Maher kept pushing the range in 2019. In a Week 6 loss to the Jets, he hit another 62-yarder, becoming the first kicker in NFL history with two 62-yard field goals in a career. A week later, in a Week 7 win over the Eagles, he connected from 63 yards to set a new franchise record, one that has since been broken by Brandon Aubrey.
The accuracy never fully caught up with the power, and Dallas eventually released him after he had missed 10 of 30 field goals. Still, Maher returned to the Cowboys in 2022 wearing No. 19, since Lewis had No. 2, and delivered a much cleaner season. He made 90.6 percent of his field goals and added another 60-yarder, becoming the first player in NFL history with four field goals of 60 yards or longer.
Maher has since been joined in that club, but being the first was enough to make him the best Cowboys player to wear No. 2.
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