Friday evening, Garrett Hartley made his announcement of what XFL team he has signed with, returning to football after 5 years out of the sport. Hartley is moving to the Pacific Northwest, where he’ll kick for the Seattle Dragons. Hartley joins Nick Novak as one of the most experienced NFL kickers in the league and is a name cemented in the history books of the New Orleans Saints.

It’s official! xfldragons ?? xfl words cannot describe how grateful I am for this opportunity… #blessed # nevergiveup https://t.co/RpsLQt4nud — Garrett Hartley (@GHartley5) January 24, 2020

Hartley, 33 years old at this point, played his collegiate career at Oklahoma where he was a Lou Groza finalist, given to the best collegiate kicker in the nation. Hartley spent 7 years in the NFL, with his most consistent stop being with the New Orleans Saints from 2008-2013. Hartley’s NFL career saw him convert 85 made field goals of 104 attempts, with a career-long of 55 yards.

Hartley’s crowning achievement is contributing to the 2010 Super Bowl Championship for the New Orleans Saints, making 3 Field Goals of over 40 yards in the game. Hartley at that time was the only kicker in NFL history to kick that many field goals over 40 yards in a Super Bowl matchup.

Hartley was last in the NFL with the Pittsburgh Steelers in 2015, where he was ultimately placed on Injured Reserve with a hamstring injury. He has been out of football since then, building a steady stream of projects in hunting and outdoor adventure. Hartley co-hosted an Outdoors Channel reality TV show called “Southern Chaos“.

Hartley has unseated Cole Tracy, the former LSU kicker, who will now wait and see if he either is picked up on waivers by another XFL team or asked to join the practice only Team 9. XFL Rosters will officially be announced on Monday, January 27th at 12 PM EST.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Konnor Fulk excelled in the Sports Management Program at Georgia Southern University. He spent several seasons working with the Washington Redskins in fan engagement, strategy, and sales strategy. Additionally, Mr. Fulk continues consulting services across the sport of NASCAR. Konnor has a longstanding obsession with the concept of Spring Football and is looking forward to sharing his expertise and opinions about the XFL relaunch. Connect with Konnor on LinkedIn or give him a follow on Twitter @XFLKonnor