It’s not at all incongruous to feel a bit of sorrow over the end of Justin Tucker’s tenure with the Ravens while fully recognizing that his dismissal was necessary, if not warranted.
Tucker was released last week after 13 seasons in Baltimore. At the time of his release, he was the most accurate kicker in the history of the National Football League, making 89 percent of his kicks.
He was named first team All Pro five times and was selected to the All-Star game seven times. He holds the NFL record for longest kick in league history, a 66-yard boot in a game four years ago in Detroit, and at his best, he was near automatic from any spot inside midfield.
Just as significantly, Tucker was a stalwart in the community. A trained opera singer, Tucker was a ubiquitous presence at local charity events as well as on television as the genial pitchman for an area convenience store chain.
That said, Tucker’s presence on the roster was a luxury that owner Steve Bisciotti, general manager Eric DeCosta and coach John Harbaugh couldn’t afford.
The series of Baltimore Banner reports linking the kicker to allegations of inappropriate misconduct in the presence of area massage therapists from 2012 to 2016 have severely damaged the good guy image that Tucker had crafted over the years.
Tucker might have been able to weather the storm had it not been for the fact that his 2024 season was the worst of his career. He made just below 75 percent of his kicks and was 7-for-16 from 50 yards out and beyond, the range that had made him special.
Add the inaccuracy to the controversy and the fact that Tucker is 35 years old, not even middle age in real life but relatively ancient in football, and the Ravens had all they needed to let him go.
In a statement, DeCosta called Tucker’s dismissal a quote football decision unquote. More accurately, the team decided that the possible juice of Tucker’s return to form wasn’t worth the squeeze of the criticism they’d take for having him on the roster.
To cover their bases, the team took a kicker, Tyler Loop from Arizona, in the sixth round of the draft last month. It marked the first time in the 30 years since the franchise moved here from Cleveland that the Ravens drafted a kicker.
While the Ravens’ brain trust cut ties with Tucker now, there are questions to be asked and answered about whether club officials knew about the allegations and did nothing until they were forced to.
It’s hard to imagine a scenario where Justin Tucker returns to the NFL soon, if ever.
If a club were to sign him, it would likely have to wait until he serves an almost certain suspension for violating the league’s personal conduct policy, even over his denial.
As kickers are a lot less valuable and much more available than other players, many, if not most teams may come to the same conclusion the Ravens did: namely that talent and charm aren’t always enough.
And that’s how I see it for this week. You can reach us via email with your questions and comments at Sports at Large at gmail.com. And follow me on BlueSky, Threads and X at Sports at Large.
Until next week, for all of us here and for producer Lisa Morgan, I’m Milton Kent. Thanks for listening and enjoy the games.
