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In Week 11, it seemed like all of the Baltimore Ravens issues stemmed from the poor play of Justin Tucker.
Sure, Lamar Jackson looked lost on some of his passes, John Harbaugh opted to keep his bell cow rusher, Derrick Henry, off the field on fourth-and-2, and the rest of the team didn't fare much better. But when push came to shove, and the Ravens needed their special teams ace to secure three points, it only happened one of the three times he kicked the ball, playing no small part in a two-point loss to their heated rivals.
What gives? How did Tucker, one of the most accurate kickers of all times – though no longer the most accurate kicker of all times – go from automatic to a borderline liability? Has he simply lost a step? Or were there extenuating circumstances that hurt his play in Week 11? Well, reporters asked Tucker that very question after Sunday afternoon's game, and he explained what happened during his two missed field goals.
“[On the first one] – when it came off my foot, I thought it was going to stay on the line in the left 30 uprights, and it just took a left, and then the 50-yarder from the right hash – I felt like I started the ball pretty much center of the uprights, and then it just took a left,” Tucker told reporters.
“I made an adjustment in the remaining opportunities that we had in the game, and I made it a point to aim further out to the right side of the center of the uprights. It's certainly frustrating, especially when we know that these [Ravens-Steelers] games come down to the wire, like this one did today, that I let a couple get away. But, like I've said before, the only thing that we can do is just get right back to work and focus on making the most out of our next opportunity.”
Whoa, interesting stuff, right? Well wait, it gets even better, as Tucker was willing to spend even more time talking about his issues in what might just be the most important stretch of his NFL career's future.
Justin Tucker has a unique perspective on missed kicks
Discussing his confidence in relation to his recent string of misses, Tucker explained his thought process heading into each kick, which is different from attempt to attempt, even if the overall results tend to linger.
“I think that's part of the challenge of playing this position – is you have to go out there and make each kick its own kick. So, compartmentalizing what happened on one kick that didn't go through and putting it away so you can go and make the most for your next opportunity, that's a challenge, and that's not necessarily an easy thing to do. I still remember misses that I had 12 years ago, and I will wake up at night thinking about one that got away. But that's just the nature of playing this position – you have to treat each one like its own kick.
“So, the first two that I missed today, I was still trying to make it a point to do just that – treat each kick for what it's worth – and ultimately, just decided to make a slight adjustment moving forward for the remaining opportunities that we would have for the rest of the day. I just made it a point and communicated with Nick [Moore] and Jordan [Stout]; ‘Hey, I'm going to pick a target line that's going to be more right-third of the uprights, and we're just going to just smash a ball and go from there. So, yes, I'll leave it at that.”
Will Tucker be able to rally from his issues and return to his old ways? Will the Ravens be able to get back on track and use Tucker as the weapon he used to be? Or will the team have to do something once believed unthinkable, bringing in a new kicker to give themselves a better chance to succeed where Tucker is failing? Fans will see soon enough.
