Ravens Not Worried About Justin Tucker
Baltimore Ravens star Justin Tucker is still the likely greatest kicker to ever play, but he hasn't quite been his usual outstanding self as of late.
Last year, Tucker made just one of five field goal attempts from 50+yards out, the worst rate of his career. Then in last week's season opener, he missed a 53-yard attempt against the Kansas City Chiefs, not a great sign after last year's woes. Tucker previously made 57 of 80 kicks from 50+ yards out (71.3 percent), so seeing his recent struggles in that department has been quite jarring.
However, the Ravens haven't lost an ounce of trust in the future Hall of Fame kicker. Special teams coordinator Chirs Horton recently reaffirmed his faith in Tucker despite the aforementioned struggles.
"I don't think there's anything to be concerned about," Horton told reporters. "The thing with Justin [Tucker] is it's always, 'Let's just play the next play.' When you think about those last six kicks, every kick is different, every situation is different, [and] every element is different. Obviously, the object is to get the ball between the goal posts, so when something doesn't go right, the one thing Justin does is he comes back, he looks at it, [and] he sees what could he have done better.
"He's in a good spot. He's still a heck of a kicker."
The good news is that Tucker has been just as solid as ever from short and medium range. He only missed one field goal from less than 50 yards away last season, and made attempts from 25 and 32 yards out last week. If he's basically an automatic three points from less than 50 yards away, that's still pretty good.
That said, there's no doubt that Tucker would love to get back on track when it comes to his famous long kicks.