Justin Tucker becomes most clutch kicker in NFL history with game-winner
Baltimore Ravens kicker Justin Tucker has already put together a borderline Hall of Fame career, as the Westlake, Texas native has won a Super Bowl, been named to six All-Pro teams — four first-team All-Pro teams and two second-team All-Pro teams — and is the most accurate kicker in NFL history, with a field goal percentage just north of 90. On Sunday, Tucker only padded his resume, as he nailed a game-winning field goal from a whopping 66 yards out — the longest field goal in NFL history.
With the kick, Tucker did more than just break an NFL record for distance. He also solidified himself as the most clutch kicker in NFL history, as he now boasts a perfect 16-of-16 track record on field goals in the final minute of regulation.
Tucker wins it from 66 yards
The Ravens, who entered the game with a 1-1 record, were playing the winless Detroit Lions on the road. For quite some time, it looked like a game in which the heavy favorite might lose. After the Lions converted on a fourth-quarter touchdown followed by a field goal, the Ravens found themselves losing, 17-16, and they called on Tucker to make history.
Tucker had missed one of four field goal attempts entering the fourth quarter, and the 66-yard attempt was two yards longer than Matt Prater’s previous record, a 64-yard boot.
Tucker’s kick certainly had the accuracy. For a while, however, it was unclear whether it had the distance. As it traveled towards the goalposts, it hit off the bottom crossbar and bounced through the uprights for a field goal, giving the Ravens a 19-17 victory and solidifying the newest NFL record.
After making his longest field goal, Tucker brings his 2021 stat line to a perfect six-of-six on extra point attempts, and a near-perfect seven-of-eight on field goals; he’s perfect from 50-plus yards, too.
A graduate of Westlake High School in Austin, Texas, Tucker went on to attend the University of Texas. In his time with the Longhorns, Tucker was used as both a punter and kicker. He averaged 40.5 yards per punt, punting 155 times over his four-year career, made 71-of-71 extra point attempts and was 40-of-48 on field goal attempts.
Tucker went undrafted in the 2012 NFL Draft but signed with the Ravens, where he’s played ever since. He’s 294-for-324 on career field goal attempts, and he’s missed just four point-after attempts in 360 tries.