Atlanta, Georgia: Falcons Release Nick Folk and Sign Jake Moody Off the Ravens Practice Squad

The Atlanta Falcons are changing kickers two days after a loss in Madrid. The Falcons are signing Jake Moody off the Baltimore Ravens practice squad and releasing veteran Nick Folk, a move NFL insider Jordan Schultz reported on Tuesday. A source confirmed the move to ESPN, TSN reported, and Reuters carried the same account through Field Level Media.

Folk's misses forced the move

Folk, 42, missed a 38-yard field goal on Sunday in Atlanta's 34-17 loss to the Cincinnati Bengals in Madrid. It was his fifth missed field goal of the season. In nine games with the Falcons, his sixth NFL team, the 19-year veteran made 13 of 18 field goals and 17 of 18 extra points, according to Reuters. ESPN reported that Folk was 1 of 4 this season on attempts of 50 yards or more.

The slump stood out because of what came before it. Over the three previous seasons, with the New York Jets and the Tennessee Titans, Folk missed only three field goals combined, ESPN reported. He made 28 of 29 field goals for the Jets last season, according to Falcons Wire. Atlanta had signed him in the offseason to a two-year, $9 million contract with $4 million guaranteed, ESPN reported. One season into that deal, the Falcons decided they could not wait for the misses to stop.

Moody gets the job, and a roof

Moody, 26, made his Ravens debut last Thursday and kicked a 53-yard field goal and an extra point in Baltimore's 33-10 loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars, according to Reuters. He was on his second stint with the Baltimore practice squad. A source told ESPN that Moody wanted the Atlanta job in part because he will kick primarily indoors for the first time in his career. The Falcons play at Mercedes-Benz Stadium, which has a retractable roof.

Moody was a third-round draft pick by the San Francisco 49ers in 2023. He has made 65 of 83 field goals, 78.3 percent, and 108 of 111 extra points, 97.3 percent, in 41 career games with the 49ers, the Chicago Bears, the Washington Commanders and the Ravens, according to Reuters. Signing a player off another team's practice squad puts him on the signing team's 53-man roster, and the Falcons' updated roster list shows Moody as the team's kicker, according to Falcons Wire.

Baltimore has to find another kicker

The move also leaves Baltimore short. The Ravens placed starting kicker Tyler Loop on injured reserve with a groin injury, TSN reported. With Loop expected to miss at least the next three games, the Ravens will now look for their third kicker of the season. Atlanta, meanwhile, hands its kicking job to a 26-year-old with a strong leg and an uneven record, in a season where close games have turned on single kicks.