Jon Dorenbos

Jonathan Paul "Jon" Dorenbos (born July 21, 1980) is an American football long snapper for the Philadelphia Eagles of the National Football League (NFL). He was signed by the Buffalo Bills as an undrafted free agent in 2003. He played college football at UTEP.

Dorenbos has also played for the Tennessee Titans.

Personal
Dorenbos grew up in Woodinville, Washington, and on August 2, 1992, when Dorenbos was 12, his mother, Kathy, was killed by his father, Alan, a software specialist. His father was charged with and convicted of second-degree murder, and sentenced to 13 years and eight months in prison. Dorenbos was sent to a foster home. After an intense legal battle, Dorenbos was adopted by his aunt and uncle, Susan and Steve Hindman. To ease his mind, Dorenbos turned to magic. Dorenbos's sister, Kristina, works in the neurological department at St. Joseph's Hospital in Phoenix, Arizona. His brother, Randy, is an independent contractor. Randy also owns "RAD Remodeling" in Southern California and Cleveland, Ohio. Dorenbos married Julie Lesicki on April 9, 2010.

Early years
Dorenbos attended Pacifica High School in Garden Grove, California, and was a letterman in football, basketball, hockey and baseball. He earned all-league honors in football and baseball. He made Dean's list and was an honor roll student in high school.

College career
Dorenbos originally attended Golden West Junior College in Huntington Beach, California. During his freshman year, one of his friends who was attending University of Texas at El Paso, Paul Tessier, called him and asked him if he could be the long snapper for the Miners who desperately needed one. However, Dorenbos was not the long snapper at Golden West at the time; he played linebacker and fullback. He ended up taking some video footage from high school, added footage of the Golden West long snapper, and sent it to the coaches at UTEP. He was eventually recruited and became the long snapper for UTEP in 23 games over three seasons. He averaged almost 10 tackles each year at UTEP on punt coverage.

Pre-draft
At UTEP's Pro Day workout, in which six teams attended, Dorenbos averaged 0.62 seconds in snapping the ball to the punter. One snap was timed at 0.59 seconds. A good time in the NFL is considered between 0.70 seconds and 0.75 seconds. Then-St. Louis Rams special teams coach Bobby April said of his workout, "Even on tape it's clear the guy is amazing. He's the best I've seen this year. And he might be the best in a lot of years, maybe among the top guys I've ever seen...But I'll tell you, Dorenbos is something else, he really is, man." Dorenbos was personally interviewed by only six teams.

Buffalo Bills
After college, Dorenbos was signed as a long snapper by the Buffalo Bills as an undrafted free agent following the 2003 NFL Draft. He was one of only two undrafted free agents to make the team in 2003. He played in his first NFL game on September 7, 2003 against the New England Patriots. He played in all 16 games for the Bills in 2003. In 2004, he led the league in tackles at his position. He played in the first 13 games of the 2004 season before damaging knee ligaments and being placed on the injured reserve list, ending his season. After training camp in 2005, Dorenbos was waived on September 6 during final roster cuts.

Tennessee Titans
Dorenbos was signed by the Tennessee Titans on October 26, 2005, the same day he worked out for the team. He played in the last nine games of the 2005 season. He was scheduled to become a restricted free agent in free agency in 2006, but the Titans decided not to offer him a tender. He became an unrestricted free agent on March 3. He was not signed for training camp in 2006, but was re-signed on October 13 by the Titans for an October 15 game against the Washington Redskins. He was released on October 25.

Philadelphia Eagles
Dorenbos was signed to a two-year contract by the Philadelphia Eagles on November 29, 2006 after Mike Bartrum suffered a career-ending neck injury. He played in the last seven games of the 2006 season, including two postseason games. He made two special team tackles in 2006. In 2007, he played in all 16 games for the Eagles, and on December 29, 2007, he signed a five-year contract extension that will keep him under contract through the 2012 season. He made six total special team tackles in 2007. In 2008, he played in all 16 games for the second-consecutive season. He made five special team tackles in 2008. Dorenbos arrived late to training camp in 2009 after he caught shingles and could not get on an airplane to fly to Lehigh Valley, Pennsylvania, where Eagles training camp is held every year. He played in all 16 games in 2009, and made four special team tackles.

On January 20, 2010, Dorenbos was named to the NFC's Pro Bowl team.

Other ventures
Dorenbos is a professional magician, and has performed in Las Vegas and Hollywood. He collects the autographs of every famous person he performs for on playing cards, which he hangs up in his house in Huntington Beach. He had also performed for former Bills teammates Alex Van Pelt and Jonas Jennings. He earned a business degree from UTEP, with emphasis in economics, finance and marketing. In the offseason, he serves as a corporate motivational speaker and has spoken for companies such as the National FFA Organization, Pioneer Investments, Jackson Hewitt and ING Group. He is the executive producer of an album called "Stripped Down" with singer Steve Carlson, who is also Dorenbos's best friend. Dorenbos started his own business in Buffalo, New York called DAC Framing. He works with several charities, including Brian Moorman's "Punt Foundation," which helps out children with terminal diseases, and Garth Brooks' "Teammates for Kids". He is the host of Inside the Eagles, which airs on Eagles Television Network. In 2009, he won a Mid Atlantic Emmy Award for his performances.