Tom Malone ( American football ) Thomas Malone ( born March 29 , 1984 ) is an American football punter who is currently a free agent . He was signed by the San Francisco 49ers as an undrafted free agent in 2006 . He played college football at Southern California . He is the cousin of NFL Punter Robert Malone . Malone has also been a member of the New England Patriots , New York Sentinels , Seattle Seahawks , Sacramento Mountain Lions , and St . Louis Rams . Early years . Malone went to Temescal Canyon High School . After beginning his football career at wide receiver he became a punter after discovering that he could kick the ball far better . After looking at USC , Stanford and Washington , he chose USC . He graduated a semester early and enrolled at USC in the spring of 2002 . College career . Malone entered the 2002 season as USC ' s first true freshman starting punter in ten years , playing all 13 games and averaging 42 . 1 yards on his 62 punts . He made the All - Freshman Team in several publications . In the 2003 season , the sophomore again appeared in all 13 games , averaging 49 . 0 yards ( breaking the previous USC record ) on his 42 punts . Malone earned first - team All - American honors from ESPN . com , SI . com and Collegefootballnews . com , becoming USC ' s first - ever All - American punter . Malone was a lead contender for the national punting title , but because of USC ' s very efficient offense that year he was five punts shy of having the NCAA - required minimum 3 . 6 punts per game to be listed — his 49 . 0 average was 1 . 0 yards above the national leader . Going into his junior season , Malone had become a fan favorite due to the novelty of having an All - American punter at a school that dominated offensively . A USC fan began a humorous and well - meaning " Malone4Heisman " campaign that received attention from both his teammates ( including that year ' s actual Heisman Trophy winner Matt Leinart ) and major sports media outlets . It was this campaign that dubbed Malone " the Bomb " . During the 2004 season , Malone again appeared in all 13 games , he averaging 43 . 8 yards on 49 punts . He ranked ninth nationally in punting ( 43 . 8 , first in Pac - 10 ) and was a semifinalist for the 2004 Ray Guy Award . His performance at the 2005 FedEx Orange Bowl earned him a place on CBS Sportsline . com ' s All - Bowl Team . In the summer before his senior season , Malone injured his right hip during workouts which limited his ability to practice during the season . During his final season , the USC offense performed better than it had in his previous seasons : averaged 50 points a game and only allowing Malone 30 punts in 12 games , lower than any previous season . USC did not punt during his final home game , a 66 - 19 offensive explosion against rival - UCLA . Despite the step backwards , Malone took things well saying , " From a team standpoint , this could not have gone better . It ' s the most fun you could ever imagine . From a personal standpoint , it ' s been a little frustrating . " He graduated from USC in 2006 with a degree in political science . Professional career . San Francisco 49ers . Malone was signed by the San Francisco 49ers as an undrafted free agent on May 5 , 2006 , but was waived by the team on July 9 , 2006 . New England Patriots . The New England Patriots signed Malone to their practice squad on December 20 , 2006 . When former USC teammate Mario Danelo died in January 2007 , Patriots head coach Bill Belichick gave him a week off and paid to send him to the funeral . He was re - signed to a future contract on January 23 , 2007 , but was waived on August 22 , 2007 . He was then signed to the Patriots ' practice squad on September 10 , 2008 , waived from it on September 15 , 2008 , and re - signed to the team ' s practice squad on November 26 , 2008 . He was waived on May 5 , 2009 , but re - signed on June 1 , 2009 . He was waived again on August 1 , 2009 . Seattle Seahawks . Malone was signed by the Seattle Seahawks on February 13 , 2010 . He was waived on April 28 , 2010 .