BALTIMORE (AP) — The most accurate kicker in NFL history is in an inexplicable slump.
Justin Tucker sprayed kicks to the left, right and off the upright Sunday in the Baltimore Ravens' 24-19 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles.
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Baltimore Ravens running back Derrick Henry (22) avoids a tackle by Philadelphia Eagles linebacker Oren Burks (42) during the second half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Dec. 1, 2024, in Baltimore. (AP Photo/Nick Wass)
Baltimore Ravens kicker Justin Tucker reacts after missing a second field goal during the second half of an NFL football game against the Philadelphia Eagles, Sunday, Dec. 1, 2024, in Baltimore. (AP Photo/Nick Wass)
Baltimore Ravens kicker Justin Tucker reacts after missing his second field goal of the second half of an NFL football game against the Philadelphia Eagles, Sunday, Dec. 1, 2024, in Baltimore. (AP Photo/Nick Wass)
Baltimore Ravens kicker Justin Tucker (9), with Jordan Stout holding, attempts a field goal, which he missed, against the Philadelphia Eagles during the second half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Dec. 1, 2024, in Baltimore. (AP Photo/Stephanie Scarbrough)
Baltimore Ravens kicker Justin Tucker (9) reacts with teammates after kicking a field goal against the Philadelphia Eagles during the first half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Dec. 1, 2024, in Baltimore. (AP Photo/Nick Wass)
Baltimore Ravens kicker Justin Tucker misses a field goal against the Philadelphia Eagles during the second half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Dec. 1, 2024, in Baltimore. (AP Photo/Nick Wass)
Baltimore Ravens kicker Justin Tucker watches his kick as he misses a second field goal attempt during the second half of an NFL football game against the Philadelphia Eagles, Sunday, Dec. 1, 2024, in Baltimore. (AP Photo/Nick Wass)
Coming into the game, Tucker had connected on 89.4% of his field-goal tries, the best percentage by anyone who has put his foot to the ball in the NFL (with at least 150 going through the uprights).
He was successful from 34 and 50 yards against the Eagles, but Tucker also hooked a kick wide left from 47 yards out and sent the ball soaring right of the target on a 53-yard try.
Both of those missed kicks came in the third quarter with the Ravens trailing 14-12. Earlier, the seven-time Pro Bowler banged a conversion kick off an upright after Baltimore bolted to a 9-0 lead.
“As simply as I can put it, I missed the kicks, and I’ll leave it at that," Tucker said. “I just left the points out there. I feel like I cost us this one, but it doesn’t really do anybody any good to dwell on it. The only thing that we can do — that I can do — is just continue to work, move forward, take it one kick at a time.”
Ravens coach John Harbaugh can't explain why a kicker who was virtually a sure thing from anywhere inside 60 yards suddenly can't connect on the easiest of tries.
“We'll go back and look at all that stuff and try to do the best we can to try to figure it out,” Harbaugh said. “He's definitely capable of making every kick. We need him to make those kicks, and nobody wants to make them more than Justin, I promise you that.”
The Ravens (8-5) have a bye next week, and there are no plans to hold a tryout for kickers.
“If you're asking me if we're going to move on from Justin Tucker, I'm not really planning on doing that right now. I don't think that would be wise,” Harbaugh said. "He'll be the first to tell you he has to make as many kicks as he can. And if you look at Justin Tucker's history, I would say he's capable of doing that.”
Indeed, since entering the league in 2012, Tucker has connected on 62 field-goal tries from at least 50 yards, including an NFL record 66-yarder at Detroit in 2021. Tucker came into Sunday's game with a 93.6% success rate in the second half and overtime — the best mark in NFL history with at least 100 attempts.
But against the Eagles, his two blown kicks in the second half put Baltimore in a bad spot. Just two weeks earlier, Tucker missed two field-goal tries in an 18-16 loss to division rival Pittsburgh, leaving Baltimore to attempt an ill-fated 2-point conversion with 1:06 left.
Suddenly, a player with 20 career game-winning kicks is being forced to talk about his misses.
“I hate that I’ve had to have this same conversation over the course of this season,” Tucker said, “but that’s something that comes with the territory in this job description. The kicks are either good or they’re not, and today, I did not do a good enough job to help our team win the football game.”
His teammates can't believe that Mr. Automatic has suddenly become Mr. Maybe.
“I said this to some of the guys on the sideline: I think this is normal for kickers, but we've been so blessed by Tucker's eliteness that we kind of take it for granted,” cornerback Marlon Humphrey said. “We used to sit there when he gets out there and know it's going in. But I think great players, they get out of those slumps at the right moment. And I think Tucker's one of those guys.”
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Baltimore Ravens running back Derrick Henry (22) avoids a tackle by Philadelphia Eagles linebacker Oren Burks (42) during the second half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Dec. 1, 2024, in Baltimore. (AP Photo/Nick Wass)
Baltimore Ravens kicker Justin Tucker reacts after missing a second field goal during the second half of an NFL football game against the Philadelphia Eagles, Sunday, Dec. 1, 2024, in Baltimore. (AP Photo/Nick Wass)
Baltimore Ravens kicker Justin Tucker reacts after missing his second field goal of the second half of an NFL football game against the Philadelphia Eagles, Sunday, Dec. 1, 2024, in Baltimore. (AP Photo/Nick Wass)
Baltimore Ravens kicker Justin Tucker (9), with Jordan Stout holding, attempts a field goal, which he missed, against the Philadelphia Eagles during the second half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Dec. 1, 2024, in Baltimore. (AP Photo/Stephanie Scarbrough)
Baltimore Ravens kicker Justin Tucker (9) reacts with teammates after kicking a field goal against the Philadelphia Eagles during the first half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Dec. 1, 2024, in Baltimore. (AP Photo/Nick Wass)
Baltimore Ravens kicker Justin Tucker misses a field goal against the Philadelphia Eagles during the second half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Dec. 1, 2024, in Baltimore. (AP Photo/Nick Wass)
Baltimore Ravens kicker Justin Tucker watches his kick as he misses a second field goal attempt during the second half of an NFL football game against the Philadelphia Eagles, Sunday, Dec. 1, 2024, in Baltimore. (AP Photo/Nick Wass)
BALTIMORE (AP) — Saquon Barkley vs. Derrick Henry was never supposed to be a head-to-head matchup.
“It ain't basketball. It ain't like I go out there and tackle Derrick Henry,” Barkley said. “To be honest, I don't know if I really want to tackle Derrick Henry.”
Fortunately for Barkley, the Philadelphia Eagles have a whole squad of defensive players assigned the task of tackling Henry, and they did a good enough job of that Sunday. They also kept Lamar Jackson under control in a 24-19 victory over the Baltimore Ravens, the Eagles’ eighth win in a row.
The much-anticipated rushing battle between Barkley and Henry didn’t quite live up to expectations. A good fourth quarter pushed Barkley up to 107 yards rushing, including a 25-yard touchdown with 7:56 remaining. Henry produced 82 yards along with three catches for 29 yards.
While Barkley may have passed Jackson in the MVP race, the Philadelphia defense was the story. The Eagles' approach was exemplified by coach Nick Sirianni's response when someone asked how he thought his team did matching Baltimore's physicality.
“They had to match ours,” Sirianni said. “That was our message going in — that they got to match our physicality. Again, that's a very physical team, that's a well-coached team, that's a team with a lot of good players. But yeah, I'd like that question rephrased a little bit.”
Justin Tucker's nightmarish season continued for Baltimore. The star kicker missed two field goals and an extra point as the Ravens (8-5) fell 1 1/2 games behind first-place Pittsburgh in the AFC North. The NFC East-leading Eagles (10-2) rallied from an early 9-0 deficit with two second-quarter touchdowns, and although Tucker did make a 50-yard kick shortly before halftime, the Ravens didn't manage a point after that until the final seconds of the game.
“Couldn’t get any rhythm going,” coach John Harbaugh said. “In the second half, we really couldn’t finish.”
Down 14-12, the Ravens had the ball for most of the third quarter but couldn't score because Tucker — an all-time great at his position who has slipped badly this year — missed kicks of 47 and 53 yards.
“We’re just going to rally around him," Baltimore safety Ar'Darius Washington said. “We know he’s a great kicker. He’s probably the greatest of all time. Whatever he’s going through, we’re going to be there for him. He’s our guy.”
Barkley's touchdown finally put Philadelphia ahead 21-12. After a field goal pushed the lead to 12, Jackson threw an 11-yard touchdown pass to Isaiah Likely with 3 seconds left.
Jackson fell to 23-2 against the NFC as a starter. He threw for 237 yards and ran for 79.
“The front just kept at it, that’s it. We didn’t keep a spy on him, we didn’t do anything extra,” Eagles linebacker Nakobe Dean said.
This matchup pitted Baltimore's top-ranked offense against Philadelphia's No. 1-ranked defense. The Ravens had the upper hand early, thanks in part to six Eagles penalties in the first quarter. Jackson threw a 14-yard scoring pass to Mark Andrews to make it 9-0.
The second quarter belonged to the Eagles, however. Jalen Hurts threw a 17-yard touchdown pass to Dallas Goedert, then scored on a 1-yard sneak in which he appeared to mishandle the snap before securing the ball and getting it to the goal line.
Andrews scored his 47th career touchdown, tying Baltimore's franchise record set by running back Jamal Lewis.
Philadelphia's Braden Mann had five of his punts downed inside the 20 and two inside the 10. The Eagles didn't get on the scoreboard until after a 58-yard punt by Mann pinned Baltimore at the 1, and then Philadelphia forced a three-and-out to give its offense the ball back near midfield.
The Eagles were without WR DeVonta Smith (hamstring). Philadelphia S Reed Blankenship left the game because of a concussion. Eagles WR Britain Covey left with a neck injury, and Goedert exited with a knee issue. ... Ravens S Kyle Hamilton went into the concussion protocol in the first quarter but was able to return. Baltimore lost WR Rashod Bateman to a knee issue and S Sanoussi Kane to a hamstring problem.
Eagles: Host Carolina next Sunday.
Ravens: After a bye, visit the New York Giants on Dec. 15.
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Philadelphia Eagles tight end Dallas Goedert (88) scores a touchdown in front of Baltimore Ravens cornerback Brandon Stephens (21) during the first half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Dec. 1, 2024, in Baltimore. (AP Photo/Stephanie Scarbrough)
Baltimore Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson throws a pass against the Philadelphia Eagles during the first half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Dec. 1, 2024, in Baltimore. (AP Photo/Nick Wass)
Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts, bottom center, recovers his fumble to score a touchdown on a keeper against the Baltimore Ravens during the first half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Dec. 1, 2024, in Baltimore. (AP Photo/Stephanie Scarbrough)
Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts tries to stretch to score on a keeper against the Baltimore Ravens during the first half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Dec. 1, 2024, in Baltimore. (AP Photo/Stephanie Scarbrough)
Baltimore Ravens running back Derrick Henry, left, is brought down by Philadelphia Eagles cornerback Cooper DeJean (33) and safety Tristin McCollum (36) during the second half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Dec. 1, 2024, in Baltimore. (AP Photo/Nick Wass)
Baltimore Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson (8) is pressured by Philadelphia Eagles defensive tackle Milton Williams (93) during the second half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Dec. 1, 2024, in Baltimore. (AP Photo/Nick Wass)
Philadelphia Eagles running back Saquon Barkley runs for a touchdown against the Baltimore Ravens during the second half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Dec. 1, 2024, in Baltimore. (AP Photo/Stephanie Scarbrough)
Philadelphia Eagles running back Saquon Barkley (26) runs with the ball against the Baltimore Ravens during the second half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Dec. 1, 2024, in Baltimore. (AP Photo/Stephanie Scarbrough)
Baltimore Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson runs with the ball against the Philadelphia Eagles during the first half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Dec. 1, 2024, in Baltimore. (AP Photo/Stephanie Scarbrough)
Philadelphia Eagles linebacker Zack Baun reacts after a play against the Baltimore Ravens during the second half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Dec. 1, 2024, in Baltimore. (AP Photo/Stephanie Scarbrough)
Baltimore Ravens running back Derrick Henry (22) avoids a tackle by Philadelphia Eagles linebacker Oren Burks (42) during the second half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Dec. 1, 2024, in Baltimore. (AP Photo/Nick Wass)
Baltimore Ravens kicker Justin Tucker watches his kick as he misses a second field goal attempt during the second half of an NFL football game against the Philadelphia Eagles, Sunday, Dec. 1, 2024, in Baltimore. (AP Photo/Nick Wass)
Philadelphia Eagles running back Saquon Barkley, left, is hit by Baltimore Ravens cornerback Marlon Humphrey, center, as Eagles wide receiver Parris Campbell (80) looks on during a touchdown run by Barkley in the second half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Dec. 1, 2024, in Baltimore. (AP Photo/Stephanie Scarbrough)
