The Baltimore Ravens just made a move that cranks the pressure way up on their kicking game. On Monday, the club officially signed former third-round pick Jake Moody to its practice squad. This isn’t just a depth move, though; this is potential, real-deal competition for Tyler Loop, and it comes right as the NFL season is about to get cooking.
Jake Moody’s Rollercoaster Ride Lands in Baltimore
Jake Moody, at 26 years old, has been on a wild ride in the league. We know he was with the Commanders since midway through last season, but they let him go mid-August after Drew Stevens won their kicking competition. Before that, Moody started his career with the 49ers, where he had a solid first season, nailing 21-of-25 field goals and converting 60-of-61 extra points. That’s good production, right? But then 2024 happened. He seriously struggled, only hitting 70.6 percent of his field goals, and the 49ers cut him loose after he missed two kicks in their very first game of the season. Ouch.
He bounced around a bit after that, stepping up for two games with Chicago, where he filled in for an injured Cairo Santos and was lights out, making 8-of-9 field goals and a perfect 3-of-3 extra points. Then he landed with Washington, playing six games and continuing to impress with 10-of-11 field goals and 10-of-11 extra points. So, we’ve got a guy here who’s shown he can perform under pressure, but also one who’s had some serious accuracy issues that cost him a job. That kind of inconsistency could make a coach nervous, but his recent performance is definitely something to note.
Tyler Loop Faces Down a Shadow From Last Season
Now, let’s talk about Tyler Loop, the incumbent. He’s heading into his second season, and his rookie year wasn’t bad on paper, right? He connected on 30-of-34 field goals and 44-of-46 extra points. Those are respectable numbers. But fans in Baltimore, and frankly, anyone who watched the AFC North race last year, remembers *that* kick. You know the one. It was a 44-yard attempt at the end of the regular season, wide right, that would have won the AFC North and punched the Ravens’ ticket to the postseason over the Steelers. That’s a gut-wrenching miss with everything on the line.
The pressure hasn’t exactly let up, either. In Baltimore’s preseason finale, Loop missed two long field goals. One was a 58-yarder, the other a 51-yarder, and both of them sailed wide left. Missing two kicks in a single game, especially at that length, isn’t going to inspire a ton of confidence from the coaching staff. With that kind of history hanging over his head, and now a proven, if inconsistent, kicker like Moody on the practice squad, you have to wonder if every single kick Loop makes from here on out will be under intense scrutiny.
The Ravens kick off their season soon, and the kicking game is going to be under a microscope. Every snap, every attempt, it all matters. Will Loop steady the ship and silence the doubters, or will Moody get his chance to step up and take over? It’s a huge question mark for Baltimore as the games start to count, and it adds a serious layer of drama to every single kick.
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Pro Football Talk.
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