National Football League kicker Kai Forbath made his preseason debut last week and fellow Palisadian Chris Conte might be in his team’s lineup tonight.
Forbath, who grew up in the Highlands, scored the Washington Redskins’ first points with a 39-yard field goal in the first quarter of last Thursday’s 23-6 victory over the New England Patriots. He missed a 46-yard attempt in the third quarter.
A third-year veteran, Forbath is competing for the starting job with seventh-round draft pick Zach Hocker. In 2011, Forbath signed with the Dallas Cowboys as a rookie free agent. He was claimed off waivers by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 2012, but did not play in the regular season. After signing with Washington in October of that year, replacing Billy Cundiff, he set the NFL record for consecutive field goals to begin a career, converting 17 straight kicks.
Forbath won three CIF Southern Section championships at Sherman Oaks Notre Dame High and was the Groza Award winner as a junior at UCLA in 2009.
Palisades High alumnus Mitchell Schwartz, the starting offensive right tackle for the Cleveland Browns, played 24 snaps in Saturday’s 13-12 loss to the host Detroit Lions.
Schwartz was a four-year starter at Pali High, where he earned All-Western League and All-City honors as a junior and Western League and City Offensive Lineman of the Year as a senior in 2006. He started all 51 games possible, at either right or left tackle, in his four collegiate seasons at California, before being drafted in the second round by the Browns in 2012.
Mitchell’s older brother and fellow Pali High graduate Geoff Schwartz made his New York Giants debut at left guard in the Hall of Fame game Aug. 3 in Canton, OH.
Conte, a free safety for the Chicago Bears, grew up in the El Medio Bluffs and played safety and wide receiver at Loyola High (leading the Cubs to the CIF title his junior year) before becoming an All-Pac-10 first teamer at Cal. He practiced Sunday for the first time since having shoulder surgery in March. Conte began training camp on the physically unable to perform list. He was a third-round draft pick by the Bears in 2011 and made the All-Rookie team.
Conte could play in tonight’s home preseason game against the Jacksonville Jaguars.
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