For any other player on the field, succeeding nearly 79% of the time would be unbelievable.

Imagine Lamar Jackson making 79% of his throws. Or Nnamdi Madubuike pressuring on 79% of his snaps.

But we’re talking about Justin Tucker here. Mr. Automatic. Someone so synonymous with high standards that Ravens fans are used to relaxing the tension in their shoulders when Tucker, who turns 35 next week, lines up to drill the kick.

Going 15-for-19 on field goals this season and missing an extra point that could have tied up a tight game last Thursday against the Bengals falls short — least of all to Tucker, who faces the tall task of matching the standard he has set throughout his 13-year career.

This week, as the Ravens prepare for a trip to Pittsburgh and its famous swirling winds at Acrisure Stadium, Tucker could use a perfect afternoon to shore up the confidence of a fan base wondering if he’s in decline.

It’s not unusual to miss one extra point in a season (he’s only hit every extra point once in his last seven seasons), and he seemed to recover from an early season “technique issue,” as he and John Harbaugh termed it.

But what is most concerning for Tucker is how consistent his mistakes have been: Each kick he’s missed has been pulled to the left. He also hasn’t been money from long range like he was during the 2022 season, when he made 9 of 14 from 50 yards or longer. Since 2023, Tucker has only made three field goals of 50 yards and beyond.

Tucker still holds the NFL records for career accuracy (89.7%) and longest kick (66). He was a forerunner for how good kickers have become.

As of this writing, NFL kickers are 97 for 144 (67.4%) on field goals between 50 and 59 yards. Three kickers have made 60-plus yard field goals, including Dallas’ Brandon Aubrey, who has nailed two such kicks as one of the few bright spots for the Cowboys this year. Twelve kickers are hitting field goals at 90% or better. The number of long-range attempts by NFL teams have risen, causing ESPN to call this era a “kicking renaissance.”

For a long time, Tucker seemed like an outlierwho the Ravens were fortunate to have. Now, the younger crowd is giving the five-time All-Pro a run for his money.

Tucker was reluctant to go into the details of why exactly this season hasn’t gone as smoothly as hoped, but said that he, long snapper Nick Moore, holder Jordan Stout, coach Randy Brown and former holder and current assistant Sam Koch have been working on ironing out their process. It’s important to note that the placement of the snap and the exactness of the hold could be factors in the relative inconsistency — though Tucker himself didn’t say so.

Tucker compared the unit’s approach and diligence to how Jackson would work on the facets of his quarterbacking, or how Kyle Hamilton would approach playing safety. “We all hold ourselves to a higher standard than anyone outside this building ever could,” he said.

One thing that he doesn’t see affecting him is his age. I asked Tucker if he still feels like the same guy that once set the standard for NFL place kicking — if he believes that he can still be at that level.

“Of course,” he said.

Tucker may have set himself up for the highest possible standard, but far from bemoaning it or shying away from it, he embraces it — he looks to return to it. Among the greatest competitors, such self-belief is a consistent trait.

“I don’t just try to measure up to myself, but my best self,” Tucker said. “It’s something that all of us take really seriously, me as much as anyone.”

Tucker deserves a chance to work through it, to prove that his wobbles can be steadied, whether by a smoother snap-and-hold operation or by his own leg that has carried Baltimore for so long.

What Tucker has accomplished puts him in such rare air that it is hard to draw comparisons to anyone. Only four kickers are in the NFL Hall of Fame, and only Morten Andersen (79.7% career) hails from the modern era, kicking until he was 47. Adam Vinatieri (83.8% career) might be the closest comparison to Tucker, and he kicked more 50-yard-plus field goals after turning 40 than before.

A turnaround for Tucker is not promised, but it should not be doubted. Just because the rest of the NFL has caught up with his excellence doesn’t mean he’s not still his own kind of outlier.

You have to believe that a man who set the standard for place kickers, with years still to go for the best of the best, will find a way to meet that standard again.