{"id":281979,"date":"2025-11-13T15:07:08","date_gmt":"2025-11-13T15:07:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/281979\/"},"modified":"2025-11-13T15:07:08","modified_gmt":"2025-11-13T15:07:08","slug":"justin-tucker-suspension-ends-four-nfl-teams-that-could-sign-all-pro-kicker","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/281979\/","title":{"rendered":"Justin Tucker suspension ends: Four NFL teams that could sign All-Pro kicker"},"content":{"rendered":"

After serving a 10-game suspension, Justin Tucker<\/a> is officially eligible to return to the NFL<\/a> this week. The former Baltimore Ravens<\/a> kicker was hit with a suspension<\/a> back in June for violating the NFL’s personal conduct policy. Tucker was accused of inappropriate behavior<\/a>, including sexual misconduct, by several massage therapists in the Baltimore area.\u00a0 <\/p>\n

The NFL investigated the situation and ended up suspending the 35-year-old kicker for 10 games. The league permitted Tucker to serve the suspension as a free agent, and as of Nov. 11, his suspension he has been reinstated by the league, which means he’s now allowed to sign with any team that might want to bring him in.\u00a0 <\/p>\n

Tucker spent the first 11 seasons of his career in Baltimore before being released in May. During a good chunk of that span, he was viewed as arguably the greatest kicker in NFL history: He was voted to the Pro Bowl seven times while also earning five All-Pro nods. In 2021, he set the NFL record for longest field goal with a 66-yard kick and he held the record for four years before Cam Little<\/a> topped it in Week 9 with a 68-yard field goal against the Raiders<\/a>.\u00a0 <\/p>\n

Although Tucker currently stands as the fourth-most accurate kicker in NFL history with an accuracy rate of 89.1%, he struggled during his final season with the Ravens, hitting just 73.3% of his kicks. Most of those misses came from long range, with Tucker going just 6 of 11 from 50 yards or longer. A change of scenery could certainly help, but Tucker is somewhat of a mystery heading into his 12th season.\u00a0 <\/p>\n

According to NFL Media<\/a>, there are several unnamed teams that might be interested<\/a> in signing Tucker, so let’s take a look at a few possible landing spots.\u00a0 <\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

\"team
\n <\/a><\/p>\n

There is no team that needs Justin Tucker more than the Los Angeles Rams. Joshua Karty<\/a> started the season as the Rams’ kicker, but he lost his job after hitting just 66.7% of his field goal attempts (10 of 15) during the eight games that he played in. That number is the second-lowest percentage in the NFL through 10 weeks. Surprisingly, Karty struggled mostly on his shorter kicks, hitting just 63.6% of his field goal attempts from inside 45 yards.\u00a0 <\/p>\n

The second-year kicker missed a 39-yard kick in a 34-10 win over the\u00a0Saints<\/a>\u00a0back in Week 9 and that ended up being the last straw for Rams coach Sean McVay. After that missed field goal, the Rams were so desperate for a new kicker that they went out and signed\u00a0Harrison Mevis,<\/a>\u00a0AKA the “Thiccer Kicker.” Mevis entered the NFL in 2024 and had never played in a regular-season game until Sunday when he was the Rams’ kicker during their 42-26 win over the San Francisco 49ers<\/a>. During the win, Mevis didn’t get to attempt a field goal, but he did go 6 of 6 on extra points.\u00a0 <\/p>\n

Although Mevis was solid, he has yet to attempt a field goal, so he’s still unproven.\u00a0 <\/p>\n

If you’re looking for a team that might sign Tucker, the Rams definitely make the most sense. They’re a\u00a0Super Bowl-<\/a>contending team in need of a kicker and it would give Tucker a chance to spend his home games kicking indoors for the first time in his career.\u00a0 <\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

\"team
\n <\/a><\/p>\n

If you’re wondering how desperate the Falcons are to find a kicker, just consider this: They were on their third kicker of the season by Week 10. The team went into the year with Younghoe Koo<\/a> at kicker, but the Falcons lost all confidence in him after he missed a 44-yard field goal in Week 1 with just six seconds left to play in a 23-20 loss to the Buccaneers<\/a>.\u00a0 <\/p>\n

After Koo’s miss, the Falcons brought in\u00a0John Parker Romo<\/a>\u00a0and he ended up beating out Koo for the starting spot. Parker Romo took over the kicking job in Week 2 and he got off to a hot start by hitting 5 of 5 field goals in a 22-6 win over the Minnesota Vikings<\/a>. However, Parker Romo has hit just 66.7% of his field goals (6 of 9) since that perfect game and the Falcons decided to cut ties with him after he missed a crucial extra point during Atlanta’s 24-23 loss to the Patriots<\/a> in Week 9.\u00a0 <\/p>\n

The Falcons have now turned things over to Zane Gonzalez<\/a>, but he’s likely not going to be the long-term answer. He’s been in the NFL since 2017, but he didn’t kick in a single regular-season game in either 2022 or 2023. In 2024, he spent six games with the Commanders<\/a> during a stint where he converted just 71.4% of his field goals, so there’s no guarantee he’ll have a successful stay in Atlanta.\u00a0 <\/p>\n

Gonazalez has played in one game for the Falcons and he went 1 of 1 on field goals while hitting both of his extra points in a 31-25 loss to the Indianapolis Colts<\/a>.\u00a0 <\/p>\n

With the Falcons cycling through kickers, it won’t be surprising at all if they reach out to Tucker at some point about their kicking job.\u00a0 <\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

\"team
\n <\/a><\/p>\n

The Packers currently have a kicker in Brandon McManus<\/a>, but it’s not clear how much they trust him right now. McManus has hit just 64.7% of his field goal attempts this season, which is one of the worst percentage in the NFL for anyone with more than 10 attempts (He’s 11 of 17). During Green Bay’s shocking 16-13 loss to the Panthers<\/a> in Week 9, McManus missed a 43-yard field goal. He followed that up in Week 10 by badly missed a 64-yard field goal on the final play in a 10-7 loss to the Eagles<\/a>.\u00a0 <\/p>\n

McManus missed two games with a quad injury and since returning from that injury in Week 8, he’s gone just 4 of 8 (50%). In the four games before the injury, he was 7 of 9 (77.8%) with a missed extra point.\u00a0 <\/p>\n

McManus’ struggles are somewhat surprising considering how well he kicked last year. With an accuracy rate of 95.2%, McManus was one of the best kickers in the NFL in 2024, which is why the Packers decided to reward him with a three-year, $15.3 million contract<\/a> in March, but he hasn’t been the same kicker this season.\u00a0 <\/p>\n

During the two games that McManus missed this year, the Packers turned to Lucas Havrisik<\/a>, who went 4 for 4, including a franchise record 61-yard field goal in Week 7 against the Cardinals<\/a>.\u00a0 <\/p>\n

Havrisik could undoubtedly be the answer, but during his last stint as a full-time starting kicker, he hit just 75% of field goals while playing for the Rams in 2023 (He was out of the NFL in 2024).\u00a0 <\/p>\n

If the Packers are uncomfortable with their kicking options, it might be worth giving Tucker a call and inviting him in for a tryout. This is a Super Bowl-contending team and the Packers need a kicker they can trust. Yes, they just gave McManus a big extension, but if they can’t trust him, then they should certainly think about kicking the tires on Tucker. \u00a0 <\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

\"team
\n <\/a><\/p>\n

4. Colts <\/p>\n

The Colts started the year with Spencer Shrader<\/a> as their kicker and he went a perfect 14 of 14 on field goals before suffering a season-ending ACL injury in Week 5<\/a>. The Colts then brought in Michael Badgley to take his place and although he’s been serviceable, he has missed several kicks. In a Week 10 game against the Falcons, Badgley missed two kicks: A 53-yard field goal and an extra point. Those two kicks almost cost Indianapolis the game, but the Colts ended up prevailing in overtime, 31-25. Badgley has hit just 88.2% of his extra point attempts this year, which is the second-worst percentage in the NFL for anyone with more than 15 attempts. Tucker has hit 98.5% of the extra point attempts in his career and has never finished with an accuracy rate below 96.6%.\u00a0 <\/p>\n

The Colts have a Week 10 bye and coach Shane Steichen said his team won’t be looking to add a kicker<\/a> during their week off, but if Badgley stumbles with any missed kicks in a Week 11 showdown against the Chiefs<\/a>, it won’t be surprising if Indy decides to add someone.\u00a0 <\/p>\n

That being said, the Colts do have a female-led ownership group, so even if the team goes on the hunt for a new kicker, they might prefer to stay away from Tucker, but he has served his time in the NFL’s eyes, so it will be interesting to see if any team out there gives the 35-year-old a second chance.\u00a0 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"After serving a 10-game suspension, Justin Tucker is officially eligible to return to the NFL this week. The…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":281980,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[559],"tags":[1258,1276,64,63,631,99760,48777,1257,23169,1243,163075,1246,163073,119230,60654,1240,163069,1250,1263,163074,1239,1231,1249,593,163071,9827,1260,163070,5378,614,1262,105718,85,46104,1247,1272,88852,163072],"class_list":["post-281979","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-nfl","tag-arizona-cardinals","tag-atlanta-falcons","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-baltimore-ravens","tag-brandon-mcmanus","tag-cam-little","tag-carolina-panthers","tag-falcons","tag-green-bay-packers","tag-harrison-mevis","tag-indianapolis-colts","tag-john-parker-romo","tag-joshua-karty","tag-justin-tucker","tag-kansas-city-chiefs","tag-kicker","tag-las-vegas-raiders","tag-los-angeles-rams","tag-lucas-havrisik","tag-minnesota-vikings","tag-new-england-patriots","tag-new-orleans-saints","tag-nfl","tag-nfl-kicker","tag-packers","tag-philadelphia-eagles","tag-place-kicker","tag-rams","tag-ravens","tag-san-francisco-49ers","tag-spencer-shrader","tag-sports","tag-suspended","tag-tampa-bay-buccaneers","tag-washington-commanders","tag-younghoe-koo","tag-zane-gonzalez"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/281979","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=281979"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/281979\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/281980"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=281979"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=281979"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=281979"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}