The Vikings have a new kicker. And he’s a pretty good kicker. And he was attracted to Minnesota by the fact that he’s playing for a pretty good team.
“At this point in my career . . . I wanted to, if it was possible, I wanted to somewhere that had an opportunity to win and be a part of an organization that’s right there and right on the brink of having a lot of success,” Bailey told reporters on Thursday, via the Minneapolis Star Tribune. “So obviously when this situation came up it fit the bill perfectly. And then I can’t complain on eight games a year inside, so that was a plus as well. So just the ‘win now’ mentality, the guys in the locker room have been great, it’s a really great locker room. So it was kind of an easy decision.”
It’s also an easy mindset for a kicker to realize what his job is.
“It’s very black and white,” Bailey said. “Your kicks either go in or they don’t. I’ve always tried to hold myself to the highest standards that I can.”
Bailey has lived up to those standards during his NFL career, becoming the second most accurate field-goal kicker in NFL history. He’ll get his first chance to make kicks with the Vikings on Sunday, at home against the Bills.