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Less than an hour ago, the Baltimore Ravens announced a press conference with an unnamed player at 2:30 p.m. ET. Shortly thereafter, The Athletic’s Jeff Zrebiec got the inside track as to who the player was and what the presser was covering. The best kicker in the NFL, Justin Tucker, has reached a contract extension with the Baltimore Ravens.
Ravens prepared to announce contract extension for kicker Justin Tucker.
— Jeff Zrebiec (@jeffzrebiec) April 24, 2019
After the news broke, the Ravens twitter decided to join in and share the official news.
We’re still kicking it.
— Baltimore Ravens (@Ravens) April 24, 2019
We have agreed to terms for a four-year contract extension with Justin Tucker, which will keep him under contract through the 2023 season. pic.twitter.com/idkJjeeVq8
This re-signing comes just two weeks after the New England Patriots and Stephen Gostkowski agreed on a two-year contract worth $8.5 million.
I expect Tucker’s contract to surpass Gostkowski’s as he’s far younger and far more accurate than the Patriots counterpart. Tucker is just under 30 years old while Ghost just turned 35.
More importantly, Tucker is an absolute star in his position. While Gostkowski ranks third in all-time field goal percentage at 87.381%, Tucker places first with a 90.114%. The difference between Tucker (1) and Gostkowski (3) is the same distance between Gostkowski (3) and Chris Boswell (15).
While other teams continue to search for a quality player at placekicker, the Ravens still riding high on their undrafted free agent from 2012.
Justin Tucker’s new deal comes in at a hefty four-year, $23.05 million extension, as Adam Schefter reports.
Ravens are giving kicker Justin Tucker a four-year, $23.05 million extension, including $12.5 million fully guaranteed in the first two years and an $8 million signing bonus, per source. All records for a kicker. Tucker tied to Baltimore through the 2023 season.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) April 24, 2019
I’ll argue that this isn’t an overpay at all. Tucker is by far the best at his position and he commands top-tier money. While other teams scramble for kickers each season with tryout after tryout, John Harbaugh can rest easy knowing his kicker is not only the most accurate, but he’s also kicking from the greater distances than anybody else.
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