Justin Medlock

Justin Charles Medlock (born October 23, 1983) is an American football placekicker who is currently a free agent in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), and earned All-American honors. The Kansas City Chiefs chose him in the fifth round of the 2007 NFL Draft, and he has also played for the Toronto Argonauts, Edmonton Eskimos and Hamilton Tiger-Cats of the Canadian Football League (CFL), as well as the Carolina Panthers of the National Football League.

Early years
Medlock was born in Fremont, California. He attended Mission San Jose High School In Fremont, and played for the Mission San Jose Warriors high school football team as both a punter and placekicker. Justin was ranked ninth in the country and was all-county and all-league at both positions. He averaged 43.1 yards per punt as a punter and made 11 out of 19 field goals in his junior and senior years.

College career
Medlock attended UCLA, where he played for the UCLA Bruins football team from 2003 to 2006. He set a UCLA career record with six field goals of fifty yards or more, and was a four-year letterman. Overall, he completed 70 field goals on 80 attempts, and 147 of 148 extra point attempts. As a senior in 2006, he was recognized as a consensus first-team All-American.

Kansas City Chiefs
Medlock was drafted in the fifth round of the 2007 NFL draft by the Kansas City Chiefs with the 160th overall pick. Medlock was thought to go into the preseason competing with Lawrence Tynes for the kicking job, but the Chiefs traded Tynes to the New York Giants, thus making Medlock the de facto starter. Medlock was inconsistent in the preseason, making 3 of 6 kicks; the Chiefs released Medlock on September 10, 2007, after he converted a 27-yard field goal and missed on a 30-yard attempt in Week 1 against the Houston Texans, and signed Dave Rayner as a replacement.

St. Louis Rams
On February 11, 2008, Medlock signed with the St. Louis Rams. The Rams allowed Medlock to seek a trade after the signing of Josh Brown. He was later released on August 26, 2008.

Toronto Argonauts
Medlock signed with the Toronto Argonauts on April 16, 2009 and competed with fellow new import kicker Eddie Johnson for the kicking spot vacated by the retirement of Mike Vanderjagt. At the end of training camp, the Argos elected to keep both kickers and coach Bart Andrus elected to start Johnson for game one and placed Medlock on the practice roster. Johnson, however, was injured on the opening kickoff when he separated his shoulder when tackling the return man and Medlock was slated to kick for game two of the 2009 Toronto Argonauts season.

On August 14, 2009, Medlock scored seven field goals, tying Lance Chomyc's Argonauts single-game team record and just short of the league record of eight shared by Dave Ridgway, Mark McLoughlin, and Paul Osbaldiston.

Washington Redskins
On February 12, 2010 the Washington Redskins signed Medlock to a future contract. He was waived on June 14, 2010.

Detroit Lions
On June 15, 2010 the Detroit Lions claimed him off waivers. He was waived on June 29, 2010.

Omaha Nighthawks
Medlock was signed by the Omaha Nighthawks of the United Football League on September 8, 2010.

Return to Toronto Argonauts
With struggles by incumbent placekicker Grant Shaw, the Toronto Argonauts elected to re-sign Medlock through the 2011 CFL season. On October 12, 2010, Medlock was released by the Argonauts after the team traded for kicker Noel Prefontaine.

Edmonton Eskimos
On October 14, 2010, Medlock was signed by the Edmonton Eskimos.

Hamilton Tiger-Cats
On March 21, 2011, Medlock was traded by the Eskimos to the Hamilton Tiger-Cats. He enjoyed a strong 2011 season with Hamilton, making 49 of 55 field goals while also handling punting and kickoff duties  He became a free agent on February 15, 2012.

Carolina Panthers
Medlock signed a 3 year contract with the Carolina Panthers on March 7, 2012. On November 20, 2012, after missing field goals in 3 straight games, Medlock was waived by the Carolina Panthers.