Justin Tucker is back in the NFL. The Kansas City Chiefs signed the 36-year-old kicker to their practice squad on Wednesday.
Tucker, a seven-time Pro Bowler, hasn’t played since the 2024 season. The Baltimore Ravens released him in May 2025 after several massage therapists in the Baltimore area accused him of sexual misconduct.
The NFL suspended him for 10 games following an investigation, though Tucker has maintained that he did not do anything inappropriate.
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“He’s done his suspension. Took care of that business there,” Chiefs coach Andy Reid told reporters on Wednesday. “I’ll leave it at that. … We try to do our homework in the best way we possibly can, talk to a lot of people and make sure things are okay.”
The Texas product became one of the most consistent kickers in the league during his 13 seasons with the Ravens. He set an NFL record with a 66-yard field goal against the Detroit Lions in 2021, a mark that has since been surpassed by Cam Little of the Jacksonville Jaguars.
But his automatic nature dwindled in his final year with the Ravens. Tucker missed eight field goals and two extra points, both career-highs.
Kansas City’s decision to sign him has proven controversial.
“WHAT?!?” former Chiefs offensive lineman Mitchell Schwartz said on social media “Shall we look at what the Google machine pulls up for the last couple years? Hmmm, 16 allegations of sexual misconduct, a 10-game suspension from the NFL, and a terrible 73% on FGs in 2024.”
“Going on the record that I hope Justin Tucker never plays a snap for the Chiefs,” said Nick Wright, a noted Chiefs fan who hosts “First Things First” on Fox Sports.
Tucker ranks second all-time in field-goal percentage, converting 89.1% of his kicks across his career. Harrison Butker, who has been Kansas City’s kicker since 2017, started the year third on that leaderboard behind Tucker and Cameron Dicker of the Los Angeles Chargers.
Butker has struggled to start the season, though. He has converted just 11 of his 16 attempts. He missed a pair of kicks during Sunday night’s loss to the Seattle Seahawks.
“He’s been one of the most consistent kickers in football, but he’s off a bit, so we’ve got to fix it,” Reid said after Sunday’s game.
Butker, like Tucker, has driven controversy off the field. He made headlines in 2024 for a commencement speech at Benedictine College, where he noted that women should be more excited to become mothers than college graduates before criticizing Catholic leaders for pushing “gender ideologies” and decrying Pride Month and the LGBT community.
Tucker isn’t on the active roster at the moment. Butker’s job isn’t in immediate jeopardy. But the addition of an eight-time All-Pro provides extra insurance for a 5-1 Chiefs team.
Reid noted that Tucker is splitting practice reps with Butker this week.
“For security, we brought him and put him in that spot,’ Reid said, describing the situation as “fluid.” “Butker gets it. He knows that that’s part of this business. He’s struggled a little bit and he gets it. He needs to pick it up here a little bit.”
Kansas City faces the Denver Broncos on Sunday afternoon.
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