Justin Tucker looked mostly embarrassed when he stood at the podium following the Ravens 24-23 loss to the New Orleans Saints in Week 7.
The veteran kicker just missed the first extra point of his career in the final seconds that could have sent the game into overtime.
Tucker thought it was important to show “accountability” and voluntarily met with the media following his costly miscue.
“Every kicker, every football player, is going to come across a moment, a challenging moment,” Tucker said. “You play long enough, you’re going to have a kick that you want back, and tonight was that night for me. The only thing you can do is just go to work, and try to make the best out of a bad situation.”
Indeed, the Ravens squandered a big opportunity with the loss to the Saints.
The Cincinnati Bengals were run off the field 45-10 by the Kansas City Chiefs, so the Ravens could have taken over sole possession of first place of the AFC North heading into the halfway point of the season.
The Ravens also suffered a key home loss and now will have to steal another victory on the road to make up for the setback.
The key will be to put this latest game behind them and get ready for the Carolina Panthers, who are coming off a spirited, come-from-behind victory over the defending Super Bowl champion, Philadelphia Eagles.
Tucker had converted the previous 222 extra point attempts over his seven-year career. Much of the focus this week will be on how he bounces back from the setback. Tucker has the support of his teammates. Long snapper Morgan Cox and holder Sam Koch both accompanied Tucker when he spoke to the media after the game.
Following the game, he was ready to own the mistake and begin another streak.
“I appreciate the efforts of my teammates, putting us in a position to extend the game, and unfortunately I wasn’t able to put the ball through the uprights,” said Tucker, who also made all 71 extra-point attempts at the University of Texas. “But, more than anything, I just wanted to be here [at the podium]. If I was going to ever teach my son or any young person about accountability, I felt like it was really important that I stand up here and answer whatever questions you guys may have.”
While Tucker’s miss was devastating, it certainly wasn’t the sole reason the Ravens lost the game.
There were other key developments that proved costly:
- The Ravens squandered a 17-7 lead in the fourth quarter.
- Special teams made another mistake and allowed the Saints to pick a up a first down off a fake punt.
- Jimmy Smith had one of his worst games as a pro and was repeatedly targeted by Drew Brees. Smith had two pass interference penalties and allowed several big plays downfield.
- The Ravens running game managed just 77 yards on 23 carries.
- The offensive line was a revolving door with injuries.
Despite the loss, the Ravens (4-3) remain in solid shape to end a three-year playoff drought. They are tied with the Bengals for second place in the AFC North behind Pittsburgh, which had a bye in Week 7.
The upcoming game against Carolina (4-2) is now critical to avoid falling to .500. Following that match up, the Ravens play the Steelers (3-2-1) at home in what could be a season-defining game.
Tucker and the rest of his teammates need to respond.
“I hope it’s not very tough at all,” said quarterback Joe Flacco, who put the Ravens in position to tie the game with a 14-yard touchdown pass to John Brown in the closing seconds. “I think we’ve got a really good group. It’s one of these games that could’ve went either way. There’s no sense in putting your head down and crying about stuff like this. You just have to move on.
“There’s good lessons in everything. At the end of the year, we can’t be looking back and regretting a game getting away because of how we thought about it the week before. You just have to go, ball out, and at the end of the 16 games you have to be able to look back at what you did and be proud of how you reacted to things. I think when you do that, that’s how you give yourself the best chance of being in the playoffs.”
