‘The ball kicks itself’: inside the minds of NFL place-kickers

Does the ball really kick itself'? Guardian US speaks to three veterans of football's most uniquely pressured position to climb inside the mind of an NFL kicker

After kicking a game-winning field goal to help the Baltimore Ravens overcome the Cincinnati Bengals in Week 5 of the 2022 NFL season, Justin Tucker was asked whether he enjoys being called upon to make such high-stakes kicks.

My feelings don't matter," Tucker said. What matters is seeing the ball snapped with 12 o'clock laces from Nick Moore, seeing the ball spotted cleanly from Jordan Stout, his first first career game-winning hold, and then from there I'm just a system kicker. The ball kicks itself at that point."