A Justin Tucker problem was probably at the bottom of the Ravens' list of concerns heading into the season. But with a league-leading 10 missed kicks this season, including five in the last three games, it's their new reality.
Head Coach John Harbaugh talked with Tucker Monday morning after the Ravens kicker missed another two field goals and an extra point in the Ravens' 24-19 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles.
Harbaugh has also talked to Ravens Senior Special Teams Coach Randy Brown, who oversees the kickers. As the Ravens go on their bye, they're looking any every possible solution to the team's most puzzling problem.
"We're racking our brains, talking to Justin, looking at what we're doing," Harbaugh said.
"I'm very confident that it's going to get fixed. I believe it will. It has to. And he's the guy to get it fixed. Sometimes you respect a player and you respect his ability to get it worked out."
While Harbaugh stated Sunday night that he didn't think it would be wise to replace Tucker, and reiterated that belief Monday, he did leave the door open to the possibility of having a kicker in for a visit for insurance.
"I don't think there would be anything wrong with that," Harbaugh said. "I wouldn't want it to be a message or anything like that other than the fact that you want to turn over every stone.
"I don't think that's the answer. That's not to say there aren't guys capable, but there's nobody nearly as good as Justin Tucker out there."
Tucker missed all of his kicks wide left except for the 53-yarder that went wide right against the Eagles. He has said that there's no overriding reason for that, and that each kick stands on its own.
Harbaugh said the Ravens' calculation on when to attempt field goals has changed in recent years, and Baltimore could choose to be more aggressive going for it on fourth down moving forward this season.
Tucker's 47-yard miss came on fourth-and-19, but his 53-yard miss was on fourth-and-7 late in the third quarter with the Eagles leading, 14-12. Next Gen Stats' recommendation based on win probability was to go for it, but not strongly (2.2%).
Harbaugh said the Ravens' comfort level sending out Tucker, who still holds the record for the longest field goal of 66 yards in 2021, for longer kicks has "tightened up a little bit" in recent years, but that 50 or 52-yard field goals are "kicks he's very capable of making."
For now, the Ravens are banking on Tucker, the league's most reliable kicker for more than a decade, to right the ship. After Tucker's second missed field goal, Harbaugh gave Tucker a hug and a message.
"I just said, 'Hey, you're going to make the game winner. Get ready to make the game winner,'" Harbaugh said. "I was confident that he would do that."
