Justin Tucker has long been one of the most reliable kickers in the history of the NFL, but he's endured some uncharacteristic struggles during the 2024 season.
The Baltimore Ravens kicker's woes were on full display during the 24–19 loss against the Philadelphia Eagles in Week 13, during which he missed two field goals on four attempts and also missed an extra point.
Tucker's kicking difficulties have led to some discussion among football fans as to whether the Ravens should consider a change at the position. John Harbaugh shot down that idea on Sunday during his postgame presser, in which he came to the defense of Tucker.
"We've been working through it. We work through it with every single player. Every single thing you fight to try and help guys be successful, so we'll do that. If you ask me if we're gonna move on from Justin Tucker, I'm not really plan on doing that right now. I don't think that'd be wise," said Harbaugh.
"He'll be the first to tell you he needs to make as many kicks as he can. I just think if you look at Justin Tucker's history, you'd have to say he's capable of doing that."
John Harbaugh said there are no plans to move on from kicker Justin Tucker, who has struggled with two missed FGs and an extra point Sunday pic.twitter.com/9YASmb0gEi
— Jamison Hensley (@jamisonhensley) December 2, 2024
It's not unreasonable for there to be some concern about Tucker, who has made just 19 of 27 (70.3%) field goal attempts this season. Prior to his struggles this year, Tucker was the NFL's all-time leader in field goal percentage, a title he's since lost to Eddy Pineiro.
Tucker has missed a career-high eight field goals in 2024––including four misses in his last three games––and the Ravens still have five games left to play. Baltimore has legitimate Super Bowl aspirations and Tucker's performance could prove critical down the stretch.
Harbaugh is determined to give the 35-year-old every opportunity to get back on track and made clear that no changes are coming at the position following Sunday's loss.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as John Harbaugh Addresses Possibility of Ravens Replacing Struggling Justin Tucker.
