Dale Hatcher

Roger Dale Hatcher (born April 5, 1963) is an American former professional football player who was a punter in the National Football League (NFL).

Hatcher was born and raised in Cheraw, South Carolina and played scholastically at Cheraw High School. He played college football for the Clemson Tigers, where, as a senior, he was honored by Gannett News Service as a first-team All-American.

Hatcher was selected in the third round of the 1985 NFL draft by the Los Angeles Rams. He had an outstanding rookie season, averaging 43.2 yards per punt and being selected to the Pro Bowl, as well as Associated Press first-team All-Pro. He spent five more seasons with the Rams, and finished his career with the Miami Dolphins in 1993.

Hatcher's blocked punt decided the first overtime regular-season NFL game to be decided by a safety. On November 5, 1989, in Minneapolis, Minnesota, Hatcher helped end the game as he tried to punt, only to have it blocked by Minnesota Vikings linebacker Mike Merriweather to give the Vikings a 23–21 win over the Rams. Teammate Jim Everett threw for the only three touchdowns of the game for the Rams as the Vikings' only other points were Rich Karlis' record-tying seven field goals.

After his professional football career ended, Hatcher took a job working at Freightliner Custom Chassis in Gaffney, South Carolina.

NFL career statistics Legend Led the league Bold Career high

Regular season Year Team Punting Punts 1985 RAM 16 87 3,761 3,344 67 43.2 38.0 1 31 6 1986 RAM 16 97 3,740 3,224 57 38.6 32.9 1 26 5 1987 RAM 15 76 3,140 2,743 62 41.3 35.6 1 20 4 1988 RAM 7 36 1,424 1,202 54 39.6 33.4 0 13 1 1989 RAM 16 73 2,834 2,379 54 38.8 32.1 1 15 7 1991 RAM 13 63 2,403 2,072 52 38.1 32.9 0 16 5 1993 MIA 16 58 2,304 1,865 56 39.7 32.2 0 13 4 Career 99 490 19,606 16,829 67 40.0 34.1 4 134 32

Playoffs Year Team Punting Punts 1985 RAM 2 18 716 665 55 39.8 36.9 0 5 0 1986 RAM 1 3 115 107 42 38.3 35.7 0 0 0 1988 RAM 1 5 241 226 63 48.2 45.2 0 2 0 1989 RAM 3 18 600 553 47 33.3 30.7 0 7 2 Career 7 44 1,672 1,551 63 38.0 35.3 0 14 2