The Tampa Bay Buccaneers officially announced the signing ok kicker Chase McLaughlin Thursday. McLaughlin was brought in to replace former kicker Ryan Succop.
Succop was released in part because of a high salary and inability to hit on field goals from 50 yards or more. McLaughlin contract is drastically cheaper than Succop’s as pointed out by Greg Auman.
“Bucs got very good value on free-agent kicker Chase McLaughlin — it’s a one-year deal with a veteran minimum salary, $50,000 roster bonus and $100,000 guaranteed.”
Via Scott Smith of buccaneers.com,
“On Thursday, the Buccaneers signed McLaughlin to a one-year deal, who most recently handled the Indianapolis Colts’ placekicking duties last year. McLaughlin was good on 83.3% of his field goal tries (30 of 36) and 100% of his 21 extra point attempts. He was nine for 12 on attempts of 50 or more yards in 2022 and over his career is 17 of 21 from that range.”
“Well, obviously, consistency is number one.: stated Buccaneers Head Coach Todd Bowles “You want guys that can kick 50-plus right now. I think that’s a big weapon if you can get a guy that has distance that way, especially in Tampa. You want longer field goal kickers. Evaluation and mental toughness is critical going in as a kicker. Some guys blossom late, some guys have been kicking for a long time and can still do it, sometimes you have to get some new guys.”
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