Brett Hartmann (born August 17, 1987) is a former

American football American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team wi ...

punter and

kickoff specialist A kickoff specialist is a special teams position in gridiron football. They are responsible for kicking the ball in the kickoff. These players tend to have a strong leg, often capable of making touchbacks, and capable of keeping a ball in the bound ...

. He was forced to retire after he suffered a career-ending knee injury. He was signed by the Houston Texans as an

undrafted free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under contract at present but who is a ...

in 2011. He played college football at Central Michigan University.

Early years

Hartmann attended

Menomonee Falls High School Menomonee Falls High School is a four-year public high school located in the village of Menomonee Falls in Waukesha County, Wisconsin in the United States. History Prior to 1969 a building on Garfield Drive was known as Menomonee Falls High S ...

Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin Menomonee Falls is a village in Waukesha County, Wisconsin, United States, and is part of the Greater Milwaukee area. The population was 35,626 at the 2010 census, making it the most populous village in Wisconsin. It is the fourth largest commun ...

and was a student and a letterman in football.

Professional career

Hartmann was eligible for the 2011 NFL Draft but was not selected. He was signed with the Houston Texans on July 28, 2011 as an undrafted free agent. He was released for the final roster cutdown, but was re-signed by the Texans after they released punter Brad Maynard. After playing in every game for the Texans, Hartmann suffered a torn

anterior cruciate ligament The anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) is one of a pair of cruciate ligament Cruciate ligaments (also cruciform ligaments) are pairs of ligaments arranged like a letter X. They occur in several joints of the body, such as the knee joint and th ...

(ACL) against the Atlanta Falcons on December 4, and was placed on injured reserve on December 6, ending his season. On November 15, 2012, Hartmann sued the county agency that operates

Reliant Stadium NRG Stadium, formerly Reliant Stadium, is a multi-purpose stadium in Houston, Texas, United States. Construction was completed in 2002, at a cost of $352 million and has a seating capacity of 72,220. It was the first NFL facility to have a retrac ...

, blaming "unsafe turf" for a possibly career-ending knee injury. In 2012, Hartmann was suspended for four games by the league for violating the league's substance policy, and was replaced by

Donnie Jones Donald Scott Jones Jr. (born July 5, 1980) is a former American football punter. He played college football for Louisiana State University and was drafted by the Seattle Seahawks in the seventh round of the 2004 NFL Draft. He also played for t ...

. Hartmann's suspension was later reduced to three. Hartmann was released during pre-season cutdowns, and as a free agent, his suspension was extended by eight more games on September 24, 2012.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Hartmann, Brett 1987 births Living people American football punters Houston Texans players People from Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin Players of American football from Waukesha County, Wisconsin