Australian rookie punter Michael Dickson has made a stunning NFL debut for the Seattle Seahawks with a barrage of pin-point punts including a monster 69-yard bomb.
The Denver Broncos, featuring Australian defensive end Adam Gotsis, beat the Seahawks 27-24 to take their season opener in Denver on Sunday.
Seahawks head coach Pete Carroll, disappointed by the loss, beamed when asked in the post game press conference to describe Dickson's first NFL regular season game.
"Oh my gosh," the veteran coach, who led the Seahawks to a Super Bowl victory in 2014, told reporters.
"What a kicker man.
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"I don't know what his numbers wound up but he's a fantastic part of our team and we're just getting warmed up with him."
Dickson, a former Sydney Swans prospect, leads the NFL after the first round with a 57.5 yards net average per punt on his six punts.
The 22-year-old from Sydney's Sutherland Shire pinned the Broncos inside their 20-yard line four times, including the almost 70-yard bomb that sailed out of bounds at the Denver six-yard line.
Carroll admitted Dickson's distance had him worried the Seahawks' coverage unit would be stretched so far they would not be able to wrap up the Broncos' returner.
"The punts were gorgeous but not just the distance of the punt," Carroll said.
"The placement of the punts.
"I was concerned in this game he was going to kick the ball so far he would stretch out the coverage so much."
Denver is 1609 metres above sea level and the thin air helps punters, but the Broncos' Marquette King only averaged 42.7 yards for his six punts.
It was Gotsis, the Broncos' 193cm tall, 130kg defensive end, and the rest of his defensive unit who dominated the game with teammate Von Miller sacking Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson three times.
Gotsis did not record a sack or tackle but harassed Wilson, including batting down a pass at the line of scrimmage.
Dickson's debut follows Geelong-raised punter Cameron Johnston's impressive first game for the Philadelphia Eagles on Thursday.
Both are graduates of Nathan Chapman's Melbourne-based Prokick Australian punting school.
Another Prokick alumni, Jordan Berry, featured in a rare NFL draw when his Pittsburgh Steelers and the Cleveland Browns were locked 21-21 after overtime.
Berry had a net average of 37.1 yards for seven punts in wet conditions in Cleveland.
