ExtremeRavens Posted Wednesday at 10:01 PM Posted Wednesday at 10:01 PM At the Ravens’ first training camp practice, while most of the 90-man roster crowds one field, a small quartet of players stands alone on the other. Kickers Tyler Loop and John Hoyland, along with punter Jordan Stout and long snapper Nick Moore, work off to the side during most team drills, practicing different variations of kicks. They will then join the team for simulated attempts. Both kickers were solid during Wednesday’s first glimpse in Owings Mills. The two combined to go 9-for-10 on field goal attempts, with Hoyland’s final kick being the only miss of the day. Loop made kicks from 34, 36, 32, 27 and 30 yards. Hoyland converted his opportunities from 37, 27, 32 and 37 yards, while he missed a 40-yarder. Expect the competition to continue well into training camp, as the Ravens are hoping to see how the specialists perform in high-pressure, game-like situations. That includes simulated drills, end-of-practice kicks and potentially preseason games. Coach John Harbaugh compared kicking with golf and said that kickers should look at their attempts through a process-based lens. If they made a good kick, but it sailed wide, that’s fine. If they struck the ball poorly, but it went through the uprights, what adjustments can they make? The Ravens are aiming to replace longtime kicker Justin Tucker, who was released by the team and subsequently suspended by the NFL for the first 10 weeks of the season for violating the league’s personal conduct policy after more than a dozen female massage therapists accused Tucker of inappropriate sexual behavior at several Baltimore-area spas and wellness centers. Tucker, who went undrafted out of Texas, made 89.1% of his field goal attempts in 13 seasons with Baltimore, making him the most accurate kicker in NFL history. Loop was the first kicker drafted in the team’s history and was the second specialist to come off the board in April. “We felt like he was the best kicker. It made sense for us to take him,” general manager Eric DeCosta said after the draft. Loop had one of the strongest legs in the class and made several 60-yard field goals during voluntary offseason practices. He finished his Arizona career with a program-record 83.75% success rate on field goal attempts, including a 62-yarder that set a school record. However, drafted kickers tend to be hit-or-miss in their rookie seasons. The Bengals’ Evan McPherson became one of the NFL’s top specialists in his first season, drilling several game-winning field goals in Cincinnati’s run to the Super Bowl in 2022. He tied Adam Vinatieri for the most field goals made in a single postseason with 14. But others have struggled. New England Patriots draft pick Chad Ryland, a former Maryland standout, made just 64% of his kicks in his 2023 rookie campaign and was released the following year. Cleveland Browns kicker Cade York was also cut after converting only 75% of his field goal attempts in his 2022 rookie season. Since 2016, drafted kickers have made an average of 81.22% of their field goal attempts during their rookie season. But more than half of the kickers drafted in the past decade were on a new team in their second NFL season. The Ravens added Hoyland, an undrafted free agent, in the offseason to compete with Loop. Hoyland is Wyoming’s all-time leading scorer and converted 15 of 19 field goal attempts in his final season. While his leg is not as strong as Loop’s, he still made several 50-plus-yard field goals in college. The most likely outcome is that Loop wins the job. He has the college pedigree, the front office invested a draft pick in him and he’s outpaced Hoyland in practices so far. But the competition isn’t decided yet. Whichever kicker performs better in practice and preseason games will likely be the replacement to one of the franchise’s most reliable players. Have a news tip? Contact Sam Jane at sjane@baltsun.com, 410-332-6200 and x.com/Sam_Jane230. View the full article Quote
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