Perhaps outside of the quarterback position, the most scrutinized position on a roster may be the kicker. After all, all they have to do is go out there and kick a football through the uprights.
It’s easier said than done.
Jake Elliott was viewed as one of the best placekickers in the NFL as late as 2023, cementing himself as a franchise legend after drilling a 61-yard game-winning field goal over the New York Giants in his rookie season which ignited the Eagles’ run to the franchise’s first Super Bowl Championship in 2017.
Since being lifted on his teammates' shoulders after that game-winning kick, he has helped win numerous games for the franchise over the course of his nine years in the league.
However, as long distance kicks become more of the norm in today’s NFL, Elliott’s production has dipped.
The 31-year-old is coming off one of his worst seasons. He made just 20 of 27 field-goal attempts, a 74.1% rate that ranked 33rd out of 35 qualifying place kickers in the league last season only ahead of Matt Gay (73.9%) and Joshua Karty (66.7%).
It was the second-lowest mark for Elliott in his career with his 73.7% clip in 2020 being the lowest in his nine seasons.
Once nearly automatic from long range from 50-plus yards, Elliott made just 50% of his kicks from that distance, knocking through only four of his eight chances last season after going a woeful 1-for-7 in 2024, going a combined 5-for-15 (33%)
Prior to the last two seasons, Elliott had a 70% success rate at 50+ yarders.
Despite his regular season struggles as of late, Elliott has delivered time and time again when the games matter most in the playoffs. He has eight years of experience kicking in the postseason, including three Super Bowls, providing a large sample size.
In 16 playoff games, Elliott has been near perfect on his field goals, making 28 of 29 for an impressive 96.6% clip. Nearly a third of those have come in the three Super Bowl appearances for the Eagles. Ironically, he has missed more extra points in the playoffs (6) than he has field goals 40-50+ yards (1).
He missed three PATs in the Super Bowl LIX run and missed another in last year’s wild-card loss to the 49ers.
However, in the Eagles’ Super Bowl LIX victory over Kansas City, Elliott tied a Super Bowl record with four field goals, surpassing Don Chandler’s 57-year-old record (15) for the most points in a Super Bowl, accounting for 16 points.
“I think that Jake has been a tremendous kicker for us since we got him off practice squad in Cincinnati in 2017,” Howie Roseman said back in February.
“Tremendously clutch. Have a lot of confidence in him as a player, as a kicker, as a person, a captain on our team and continue to believe in him as our place kicker.”
It’s well documented how much Nick Sirianni and Roseman enjoy bringing in players to build up the competition throughout training camp and the preseason.
Will we see that ring true when it comes to Elliott?
There are always kickers that are ‘on the street’ just a phone call away from bringing in to try and dethrone the incumbent. But for now, all signs indicate that the team trusts Elliott heading into the season.
They reworked his deal in which Elliott accepted a $1 million pay cut from $6 million to $5 million, but the $5 million is guaranteed which makes it harder to cut the kicker even if he struggles. He is under contract through the 2028 season.
Elliott will need to get off to a strong start to try and ease the uncertainty that surrounds him heading into the season.
