The Falcons need to replace Nick Folk

The Falcons went in an odd direction this offseason when they attempted to address a kicking situation that plagued them all of last season, signing 42-year-old Nick Folk.

It was a move that was mostly glossed over at the time. Kickers rarely make headlines until they do something wrong, and Folk at least came to Atlanta a seasoned veteran who had been one of the most reliable kickers in the league over the last three seasons, missing just three field goals over that stretch and leading the league in kicking accuracy every year.

In hindsight, it’s probably a move we should have questioned more. This isn’t a team that ever expected to be a Super Bowl contender, and bringing in a 42-year-old kicker was always just a band-aid over an open wound. His performance was going to fall off a cliff eventually. Father Time shows no mercy to anybody, and unfortunately for the Falcons, he’s come for Folk much sooner than they had hoped.

After another missed kick on Sunday against the Bengals — this one from inside 40 yards, Folk’s first miss from inside that range since 2017 — he’s now missed five field goals over the first nine games. Out of just 18 attempts, that’s a make percentage of 72.2%, which would be his lowest mark since his days with the Dallas Cowboys back in 2009.

It’s one thing to be an older kicker who can’t compete with the superhuman legs of most of the young guys coming into the league. It’s another thing entirely to be that inaccurate — a clear sign that the end of the line is probably around the corner for Folk.

The Falcons should have taken a more serious approach to their kicking woes during the offseason, focusing on finding someone who could be the guy for years to come. They opted for a veteran at the tail end of his career, and it’s time to pull the plug.

Atlanta has already made its direction clear, focusing on the future by trading Jessie Bates III to the Jaguars. With that in mind, they should spend the final eight games of the season as an open tryout for some younger kickers who could help them beyond this year. It’s not as if a new guy can be much worse than what they’ve gotten out of Nick Folk.