Chiefs Sign Justin Tucker to Practice Squad as Butker Struggles Continue

The Kansas City Chiefs signed kicker Justin Tucker to their practice squad on Wednesday, a move first reported by Sam McDowell of the Kansas City Star and confirmed by multiple outlets. Tucker, 36, has not played in the NFL since the 2024 season with the Baltimore Ravens, and his return puts immediate pressure on Harrison Butker, the Chiefs kicker since 2017, whose misses have piled up this season.

Tucker worked out for Kansas City this week along with other kickers, including former Los Angeles Rams kicker Harrison Mevis. According to reports from the workout, Tucker made all 30 of his attempts in front of the Chiefs staff. NFL Network described him as insurance for Butker, and for now that is the right word. Butker remains the starter, but he has made only 11 of his 16 field goal attempts this season, a 68.8 percent rate that ranks near the bottom of the league. In Sunday night's 20-3 loss at Seattle, he missed from 58 and 45 yards and connected from 50. Head coach Andy Reid said after that game that Butker has been one of the most consistent kickers in football but is off a bit and has to fix it. The Associated Press has reported that Butker has missed 15 kicks since the start of last season, the most in the NFL over that span.

A long road back

Tucker spent 13 seasons in Baltimore after joining the Ravens as an undrafted free agent in 2012. He won Super Bowl XLVII as a rookie, was named a first-team All-Pro five times and a Pro Bowler seven times, and still holds the NFL record with a 66-yard field goal. His career field goal rate of 89.1 percent, 417 makes in 468 attempts, is the second best in league history.

The Ravens released him in May 2025. Sixteen massage therapists had accused Tucker of inappropriate sexual behavior during sessions in the Baltimore area in the 2010s. Tucker denied the allegations and did not appeal, but the NFL investigated and in June 2025 suspended him for 10 games for violating the league's personal conduct policy. He served the suspension last season without a contract and is eligible to play immediately.

His last season on the field was also his worst. In 2024 Tucker made 22 of 30 field goals, a career-low 73.3 percent. After the suspension ended he tried out for the New Orleans Saints, the Indianapolis Colts and the New York Jets without landing a contract, including further workouts with the Saints and Colts this July and with the Jets in September.

What happens next

A practice squad signing carries no promise of a game. Kansas City can watch Tucker kick in practice, judge his leg at 36 after nearly two years away from regular season football, and decide whether the upgrade is real before activating him. If Butker's struggles continue, the Chiefs now have the most decorated replacement available in their own building. If Butker steadies himself, Tucker can be released without ever appearing in a game. Either way, a signing that began as a report on social media on Wednesday morning became the most talked about special teams move of the season by midday, and the Chiefs have made clear that their kicking job is open in a way it has not been for a decade.