Justin Tucker on game-winning kicks: After the pre-kick operation, I'm just a system kicker
There are few things in the National Football League that are more automatic than Justin Tucker nailing game-winning field goals for the Baltimore Ravens. The five-time Pro Bowler and future Hall-of-Famer is simply put, the best kicker ever to suit up in the National Football League. He makes it look easy and effortless, time and time again. The most automatic to ever do it did it again on Sunday night against the Cincinnati Bengals in the closing seconds, lifting the Ravens to a critical 19-17 win over their AFC North Division rivals. Following the game, he made a surprising admission about whether or not he loves the game-winning kick scenarios.
“I mean I love it. I hate it. And everything in between. I’d be lying to you if I said every time, I got out there I’m not just a little bit nervous. I’m not thinking about worst case scenario. But it’s really important to me and to us to take those 1.3 seconds between the snap, the hold, the kick and just focus on the nuts and bolts of what’s going to make the kick. My feelings don’t matter. What matters is seeing the ball snapped with 12 o’clock laces from Nick Moore, seeing the ball spotted cleanly from Jordan Stout–his first career game-winning hold. And then from there, I’m just a system kicker. The ball kicks itself at that point. All we’re really thinking about is those things that are going to make the kick. All the feelings and stuff we can enjoy them after the fact,” Tucker said on the field after the game.
Justin Tucker’s stats are flawless
Tucker’s game-winning kick was yet another beauty, right down the middle of the uprights, a 43-yarder that was about as perfect as it could possibly be. In Sunday night’s game, he was once again flawless, drilling four of his four attempts–including a 58-yard bomb in the third quarter. When you say that the former Texas Longhorn is automatic, the stats back that up. He’s made 72 straight field goals in the second half and overtime, including an NFL-record 59 straight in the fourth quarter and overtime, according to Jonas Shaffer of the Baltimore Sun.
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Surprisingly, Tucker was having some struggles in pre-game warmups earlier in the night, only hitting 6 of 19 of his field goal attempts then. He discussed how difficult it is to kick in Baltimore’s stadium. “Well, it’s a good thing they don’t keep stats for pregame warmups. This is a tough place to kick; whether there’s wind in the stadium or we got fresh sod or whatever it may be. So pregame warmups–it just is what it is,” Tucker said.
The game-winner pushed the Ravens’ overall record to 3-2 this season and in 1st place of the AFC North Division. The Bengals dropped to 2-3 overall. Baltimore will face the New York Giants next Sunday. Kickoff for that one is slated for 1:00 PM EST.