We’ve seen plenty of errors from kickers around the league in 2016, but Ravens kicker Justin Tucker has remained immune to them.
Tucker came into Sunday’s game with the Bengals without a missed kick yet this season and he’s still perfect through the first half despite a high degree of difficulty. Tucker three field goals of more than 50 yards, something that no kicker has done in a game since Phil Dawson in the 2012 season, and the Ravens lead 16-3 as a result of his long-range success.
The Ravens jumped out to a 10-0 lead and appeared to be on the verge of handing much or all of it back after a tipped ball turned into a Rey Maualuga interception deep in their own territory. A miscommunication on a shotgun snap thwarted the Bengals, however. The ball bounced off Andy Dalton’s chest and Elvis Dumervil recovered to keep the score 10-3.
Tucker would hit two more field goals from there, one of which came after Bengals coach Marvin Lewis elected to decline a holding penalty on a third down sack. The penalty would have pushed the Bengals out of Tucker’s field goal range -- a 67-yarder is too far, right? -- but Lewis elected not to give the Ravens offense another try.
Well, the parts of the Ravens offense that don’t include Tucker anyway. With the defense allowing 115 total yards, Tucker might be enough offense anyway.