Justin

Tucker

Tucker for the first time in his 13-year NFL career is struggling mightily to put the ball between the uprights. He’s missed six of his 22 field goal tries in 2024, including two in Baltimore’s Week 11 loss to the Steelers. “You have to find that competition first if you’re going to be blunt about it. Where is that competition? That would be one thing,” Harbaugh said when asked if the team would consider benching Tucker. “The best option right now is to get Justin back on point, because he’s fully capable of doing it. (We) certainly haven’t lost any confidence in Justin Tucker.” Tuckers’ struggles from distance stretch back to 2023. Over the past two seasons, he’s made just four of 12 field goals of more than 50 yards. Continued struggles for Tucker could force Harbaugh to give some thought to a kicker change as the Ravens head toward the playoffs.

Tucker gets $17.5 million guaranteed. The deal, per ESPN’s Adam Schefter, will make Tucker, 32, the NFL’s highest paid kicker. Tucker has certainly earned the highest-paid-kicker status after a decade of clutch kicking in Baltimore. The big-footed Tucker, who last year set the league record with a 66-yard bomb at the buzzer against the Lions in Week 3, has drilled 91.1 percent of his 358 field goal tries since entering the league in 2012. He’s made a mind-boggling 72.8 percent of his kicks beyond 50 yards. Last year, he made all six of his attempts from outside 50 yards. Though the Ravens’ red zone aggressiveness sometimes limits Tucker’s opportunities, he should be the first kicker off draft boards in 2022.

Tucker crushed the 66-yarder as time expired -- the ball bounced off the crossbar and fell through for the win. Tucker’s heroics saved the Ravens on a day that saw Marquise Brown drop three touchdowns and Baltimore struggle to get anything going on the ground against a middling Detroit front seven. Tucker has made all 16 of his field goal tries in the final minute of the game over his nine seasons in Baltimore. Tucker doesn’t have the fantasy upside he had with the Flacco-era Ravens, but he’s still an every-week play in 12-team formats.

Tucker is now tied to Baltimore through his age-34 campaign. He gets $12.5 million guaranteed, which is a record for a kicker. Tucker has drilled 90.1% of his field goals in his career and just missed his first career extra point last season. He’s a three-time first-team All-Pro and should have plenty of years left in his leg.

Tucker, an undrafted free agent out of Texas, has made 35-of-37 attempts through Wednesday’s practice. Cundiff, who shanked a game-tying kick in last year’s AFC Championship game, has gone 29-for-35. “I think you go by your instincts a little bit, but we know the stats inside out, and you certainly factor all that in,” said coach John Harbaugh.

Rookie Justin Tucker has out-kicked Cundiff in practice, but both have been perfect through two exhibition games. The Baltimore Sun confirms Cundiff can lock up the job by staying clean in the final two tuneups.

Undrafted out of Texas, Tucker beat out Billy Cundiff for the job after, in Cundiff’s words, a “lights out” camp. It’s a risky move by Ravens management, but they save $1.81 million by going with the much cheaper Tucker. If Baltimore’s offense continues to play as aggressively and productively as it has this preseason, Tucker could find himself on the early-season fantasy radar.

WR Phillip Livas was waived in a corresponding move. Tucker will provide competition for Billy Cundiff, who converted just 28-of-37 field goals last season before shanking a kick that could have sent the AFC title game to overtime.

A “lights out” Justin Tucker has out-kicked Cundiff in early camp practices, but the veteran has done nothing to lose the job. We’d recommend steering clear of Ravens kickers in fantasy drafts.

Tucker had a spectacular rookie season, converting 30-of-33 field goals and all 42 of his extra points. He also went 2-for-2 in the Super Bowl, with both makes coming in the fourth quarter. The last kicker to go perfect in a season was Mike Vanderjagt, who went 37-of-37 for the Colts in 2003.