The all-time great NFL kicker who suddenly can’t make field goals

In what would eventually prove to be a tight, 1990s-esque, cold weather, low-scoring thriller between the Baltimore Ravens and Pittsburgh Steelers in Week 11, momentum appeared to be shifting toward the Ravens late in the first quarter.

Baltimore was lucky to be trailing only 3-0 after a fumble and missed field goal on two of its first three drives. But the defense had just stuffed the Steelers on a 4th-and-1 run, setting up the offense with great field position.

The Ravens were only able to pick up 14 yards after the turnover on downs. Fortunately, they had set up their kicker — the second-most accurate in NFL history — for a 50-yard field goal to tie the game.

Except he missed for the second straight time, keeping Pittsburgh in front.

The Ravens ultimately fell to 7-4 after a hard-fought, 18-16 loss to their bitter rival, the Pittsburgh Steelers, on Sunday. It was a game with massive implications, as the winner would take over first place in the AFC North — and thus be in the driver’s seat to host a playoff game.

The Steelers won scoring exclusively via field goal, with kicker Chris Boswell hitting all six of his attempts. The Ravens, on the other hand, missed two field goals in the narrow defeat. And that’s become a concerning trend.

All four of Baltimore’s losses this season have been in one-possession games. And in all four of those losses, kicker Justin Tucker has missed at least one field goal.

Kickers missing kicks is not a new phenomenon — unless that kicker is Tucker.

Entering the 2024 season, Tucker was the most accurate field-goal kicker in NFL history, converting 90.2% of his attempts, the only player at or above the 90% threshold. His accuracy has taken a tumble this season, however, as Tucker has made only 16 of 22 field goals through 11 games.

It’s a shocking fall from grace from a player who had become a legitimate weapon for Baltimore.

Tucker’s field-goal percentage this season is 72.7% — 35th in the league. Not only has that dropped him under 90% for his career, it is by far the worst accuracy he’s ever had in a single season. His previous low was 82.5% in 2015. From 2016-23, Tucker made at least 85% of his kicks in eight straight seasons, an NFL record.

Tucker has already missed six kicks in 11 games this season. From 2012-23, Tucker missed at least six kicks in a full season only twice.

From 2016-22, Tucker made 65 field goals in a row in the fourth quarter and overtime. He has made an NFL record seven game-winning kicks with no time left on the clock in regulation. He also has the record for longest kick in NFL history, 66 yards, which also happened to be a walk-off game winner.

From 2016-23, Tucker converted 78% of his field goals from over 50 yards. In the last two seasons, he’s made only 33.3% of his kicks from that distance.

“[Tucker] needs to make kicks. He knows that, that’s important,” Ravens coach John Harbaugh said after the loss Sunday. “He makes them in practice, and he made the long one later, which was good to see, which means he’s still very capable. Kick them straight, we’ll be good.”

Baltimore is almost certainly going to need Tucker to contribute at a higher level moving forward. Even with MVP-caliber play from Lamar Jackson and a rushing attack fortified by offseason signing veteran running back Derrick Henry, kickers can swing games. (Kansas City’s Harrison Butker, for example, is one spot behind Tucker on the all-time field-goal accuracy list. He hit all 11 of his playoff field goals for the Super Bowl-winning Chiefs last season.)

The Ravens, for now, are standing by their longtime kicker. When asked Monday if the team would bring in a player to compete with Tucker, Harbaugh said the team has no plans to do so.

“The best option right now is to get Justin back on point because he is fully capable of doing it,” Harbaugh said. “We certainly haven’t lost any confidence in Justin Tucker.”

Even on Sunday, after arguably costing his team the game, Tucker wasn’t shaken.

“I’m still confident I’m going to go out there and nail every single kick,” Tucker said. “Part of the way we stay confident is by continuing to work and trust the process. I might sound like a broken record, but it’s a part of what brings us success, is just trusting the process and then taking it one kick at a time.”