25 Best & Most Accurate NFL Kickers of All Time
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We can all agree that passing is a vital element in American Football, but it’s the goals that count in the end. So, having one of the best kickers in NFL gives you a huge advantage because these players can help the team score field goals while the rest stands and watches. Indeed, these goals are not as valuable as touchdowns, but they are definitely exciting.
The best NFL kickers of all time have often helped their squads win matches. In other words, they can be the players that have decided the final result. Hitting many fields goals brings backs many points (three points each, as you probably know). Every team has a kickoff specialist like this, but some of them are way better than the others.
Here we will talk about the crème de la crème, the best NFL kickers of all time. Check the list below!
25. Josh Brown
| Field Goal Percentage | Years Active | Number of Teams |
| 83.947% | 2003-2016 | 4 |
With an 83.947 percentage of field goals made, Josh Brown is one of the best NFL kickers ever. He started his NFL career in Seattle Seahawks in 2003. Josh also played for St. Louis Rams, New York Jets, Cincinnati Bengals, and New York Giants. He actually won the Pro Bowl award while playing for the Giants. All in all, Brown scored 319 field goals out of 380 attempts. That’s impressive! What’s not impressive were his domestic violence charges that eventually ended his career. Too bad because this player had to give more on the field and rank higher on the list of greatest kickers of all time.
24. Dan Carpenter
| Field Goal Percentage | Years Active | Number of Teams |
| 83.986% | 2008-2016 | 2 |
Here’s one of the best kickers and punters born in Nebraska. Dan Carpenter’s career began in Miami Dolphins in 2008. He played there for four years before joining Arizona Cardinals and New York Jets briefly. He then started playing for the Buffalo Bills, where he ended his career in 2016. So, in eight years, Dan managed to score 236 field goals out of 281 attempts. Simply put, that’s an 83.986% next to this player’s stats. Many of these field goals were winning goals, like the one against the Bengals in 2016 or the 43-yard field goal that helped the Miami Dolphins beat the Seattle Seahawks back in 2012.
23. Graham Gano
| Field Goal Percentage | Years Active | Number of Teams |
| 84.024% | 2009-2021 | 3 |
Only a handful of NFL players can say they’ve scored a 63-yard field goal that helped their team win a match. Of course, this was not the only impressive thing about Graham Gano. For instance, he scored a 71-yard field goal, but it was negated by a penalty. He started as a practice squad member in the Baltimore Ravens. Still, He moved to Las Vegas Locomotives after a few weeks. He played for the Washington Redskins, Carolina Panthers, and New York Giants in his lengthy career. With a field foal percentage of 84.024% (out of 338 attempts), it’s no wonder why many people consider him to be the football kicker. The best part is that he’s still active while writing this.
22. Shaun Suisham
| Field Goal Percentage | Years Active | Number of Teams |
| 84.064% | 2005-2014 | 3 |
After playing college football at Bowling Green, Shaun moved to the big league as a player for the Pittsburgh Steelers in 2005. It seems that he didn’t fit well there because he changed the team with the Dallas Cowboys the same year. Interestingly, after changing several squads, he ended up in Pittsburgh again, where he ended his career in 2015 (after playing five years in a row for the same team). This Canadian NFL player did not win any awards, but no one can deny his stunning record. Namely, his field goal percentage is 84.064 even though the number of attempts he had is slightly lower than many other players on this list – 251.
21. Jake Elliot
| Field Goal Percentage | Years Active | Number of Teams |
| 84.286% | 2017-2021 | 1 |
From West Springs, Illinois, comes another athlete that can become the best NFL kicker. Of course, we’re talking about Jake Elliot, the placekicker who joined the NFL in 2017. Even though he was drafted by the Cincinnati Bengals, Jake continued his career in Philadelphia Eagles the same year. So, he has played for just one NFL team so far and is doing great. Since Jake has a record of just five active years, it’s no wonder his number of FGA (field goal attempts) is relatively low – 140. Still, the good thing is he scored 118 times, which means the field goal percentage of this player is 84.286%. Don’t forget that his longest field goal is 61 yards.
20. Dustin Hopkins
| Field Goal Percentage | Years Active | Number of Teams |
| 84.579% | 2015-2021 | 2 |
One of the most famous NFL kickers is still active. Yes, we’re talking about Dustin Hopkins, the placekicker for the Los Angeles Chargers since 2021. This was not his first team, though. He played for the Washington Redskins and the Buffalo Bills too. The Texan with a powerful shot scored a 56-yard field goal a few years ago, which is his longest goal. From the 214 attempts he made, Dustin scored 181 field goals. Statistically speaking, his FG percentage is 84.579%. With persistence and some luck, we are sure he can improve this percentage soon.
19. Cody Parkey
| Field Goal Percentage | Years Active | Number of Teams |
| 84.615% | 2014-2021 | 6 |
When you see this guy, you know that he’s really into American Football. Fans know him as a calm person, which may be one of the things that help him score field goals easily. When you look at his NFL career, which by the way, started in 2014, you’ll notice that Cody is not the type of football player that commits to one team. He never stayed in one squad for more than a season, and he’s currently a free agent. This didn’t stop him from scoring 121 field goals so far and getting a field goal percentage of 84.615%.
18. Jason Myers
| Field Goal Percentage | Years Active | Number of Teams |
| 84.737% | 2015-2021 | 3 |
After playing college football at Marist and leaving a great impression, Jason Myers was contacted by several professional teams. In 2014, he decided to join the San Jose SaberCats as part of the AFL. In 2015, he started playing for the Jacksonville Jaguars in the NFL. When it comes to his NFL record, this California-born athlete has scored 161 field goals so far (Field goal percentage – 84.737%), making him one of the most accurate NFL players of all time.
17. Stephen Hauschka
| Field Goal Percentage | Years Active | Number of Teams |
| 85.161% | 2008-2020 | 5 |
His last name may be a little bit difficult to pronounce. Still, it’s definitely something you should remember when analyzing the greatest kickers of all time. Unlike most players on our list, Hauschka was more interested in soccer and lacrosse in high school. He kept his interest in these sports in college, but a friend asked him to try football, and the rest is history. The first team he played for was the Baltimore Ravens in 2008. Stephen changed a few other NFL teams before finishing his career in the Jacksonville Jaguars. With 264 field goals out of 310 attempts and a GF percentage of 85.161% he secured his position on the top 25 list for a long time.
16. Shayne Graham
| Field Goal Percentage | Years Active | Number of Teams |
| 85.494% | 2001-2015 | 10 |
As we said before, some of the best NFL kickers of all time are not active for years now. One of these athletes is Shayne Graham. He played in the NFL for fourteen years, from 2001 to 2015. Shayne signed with over ten teams in this period. Most of these were one-season deals, but he played for the Cincinnati Bengals and the New Orleans Saints for a few years. Graham is a professional coach now proud of his accomplishments, like the field goal percentage of 85.494% and his longest FG of 54 yards.
15. Matt Bryant
| Field Goal Percentage | Years Active | Number of Teams |
| 85.560% | 2002-2019 | 5 |
He’s not the most accurate kicker in NFL history, but Matt Bryant deserves our respect. You can rarely find a placekicker with so many scored goals and such precision. What’s interesting is that Matt Bryant (also known as Money Matt) was not drafted in 2000, so he started as a professional player in the AFL. But, it didn’t take much time before the NFL teams realized what they had missed. Even though he was a team member of several squads, Matt played the most for the Atlanta Falcons (10 seasons, including his last season as an active player). 85.560% – that’s the field goal percentage of Bryant and what’s even more impressive is that he scored 397 of these goals.
14. Rob Bironas
| Field Goal Percentage | Years Active | Number of Teams |
| 85.663% | 2005-2013 | 1 |
Unfortunately, in addition to the inactive athletes, we have one who’s not alive. Rob Bironas lost his life in 2014 as a free agent, which means that he didn’t give up on his profession when the fatal car accident happened. In any case, Rob is remembered as an excellent player who set an NFL record in 2007. Namely, he scored the highest number of field goals in a single match. We should also mention his 60-yard winning shot and the field goal percentage of 85.663%. Don’t forget that he had decent arena football results, including 36 FG out of 83 attempts.
13. Dan Bailey
| Field Goal Percentage | Years Active | Number of Teams |
| 85.862% | 2011-2020 | 2 |
Born and raised in Oklahoma (where he also finished college), Dan always knew he would be an American football player. Loyalty seems to be one of the virtues of this player because he spent nine seasons playing for just two teams. He first started with the Dallas Cowboys (2011) and moved to the Minnesota Vikings in 2018. Dan has been a free agent for two years now. One of his most impressive seasons was in 2012 when he scored 29 (out of 31) field goals for the Dallas Cowboys. That’s a field goal percentage of stunning 93.5%. Yet, the overall rate is a little bit lower – 85.862%. Something you can safely bet on.
12. Nate Kaeding
| Field Goal Percentage | Years Active | Number of Teams |
| 86.190% | 2004-2012 | 2 |
You can’t expect to become one of the best NFL kickers of all time without taking risks. Nate Kaeding did this in 2004 during his first NFL season for the San Diego Chargers. He took the chance to score a field goal at the end of the match and missed it. This was not the last time Kaeding made an error, but Nate is actually a great player when we look at his overall score. After playing for the San Diego Chargers for 8 seasons, he moved to the Miami Dolphins and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. In the end, he had a field goal % of 86.190%, although we must say that in numbers, these are “only” 181 goals.
11. Stephen Gostkowski
| Field Goal Percentage | Years Active | Number of Teams |
| 86.344% | 2006-2020 | 2 |
Stephen Gostkowski is one of the most seasoned players on our list of best field goal kickers ever. Some of the stats related to this athlete are breathtaking. For example, he played in the NFL for 14 seasons (still not retired officially). Furthermore, Stephen is one of the two NFL players who scored 500 points in their first four seasons and the first one with over 1000 points after his first eight seasons. It goes without saying that his FG statistics are equally remarkable. For instance, he has a field goal percentage of 86.344% (392 field goals!). It’s no surprise that Stephen also has an extremely high number of touchbacks – 574.
10. Kai Forbath
| Field Goal Percentage | Years Active | Number of Teams |
| 86.364% | 2012-2020 | 7 |
It’s not difficult to predict what players can expect when they finish high school and college like Kai Forbath. Numerous newspapers and websites had named Kai the best player when he played for the Notre Dame High School in Sherman Oaks and the UCLA. The good thing is that Forbath stayed in shape once he received a call from the Dallas Cowboys in 2011. Many fans agree that Kai could be even better if he found the right team. This player switched many teams before ending in the Los Angeles Rams in 2020. After just one season there, he’s now a free agent. It’s worth mentioning that he finished three seasons with an FG% of 100, although he scored just 36 field goals in total. He now holds a record of 86.364% for field goal success.
9. Mike Vanderjagt
| Field Goal Percentage | Years Active | Number of Teams |
| 86.466% | 1998-2006 | 2 |
Mike Vanderjagt played as both a placekicker and a punter. He was part of the National Football League for nine seasons. Vanderjagt played for two teams during this period, but most people remember him as an Indianapolis Colts placekicker. As a Canadian, he also played in the CFL, but he had a couple of seasons in the AFL. So, we can freely say that he is an experienced player. This former footballer (born in 1970) made 230 field goals out of 266 attempts. This means that the FG percentage for Mike is 86.466%.
8. Wil Lutz
| Field Goal Percentage | Years Active | Number of Teams |
| 86.585% | 2016-2020 | 1 |
Our list goes on with one of the most successful Georgian athletes and best football kickers – Wil Lutz. Born in 1994, he’s an active player who still has a chance to improve his record. Although he signed with the Baltimore Ravens in 2016, he became a member of the New Orleans Saints a few months later. Wil still plays for this team, making it the only NFL team he played for. Looking at his stats will answer why this relationship is working. In addition to the 316 touchbacks, Lutz made 142 field goals after 164 attempts. Thanks to his precision strike, he was named player of the month a few times now.
7. Robbie Gould
| Field Goal Percentage | Years Active | Number of Teams |
| 86.598% | 2005-2021 | 3 |
Inevitably, you will find some veterans on our list of best NFL kickers. This time, you are reading about Robbie Gould, who started as a college football player at Penn State. Many readers know him as a Chicago Bears team member (2005 to 2015). In these ten years, Gould became the top-scoring player for this team. After a short season in the New York Giants, he joined the San Francisco 49ers in 2017. Robbie is still active. We can highlight many achievements of this athlete. Still, the most important one for this article is that he has an FG percentage of 86.598 after 485 attempts.
6. Josh Lambo
| Field Goal Percentage | Years Active | Number of Teams |
| 87.075% | 2015-2021 | 2 |
Like a few other people on this list, Joshua Gregory Lambo, or simply Josh Lambo, was interested in soccer when he was young. This passion continued when he joined FC Dallas in the MLS Reserve Division. He also played for the US U-17 national soccer team. However, once he started visiting Texas A&M University in 2012, he turned to American football, a move that was quite smart. It turned out that he’s enormous potential, and that’s why the San Diego Chargers offered him a deal. After staying there for two seasons, he spent four seasons in the Jacksonville Jaguars. This placekicker scored 128 field goals with a goal field percentage of 87.075%.
5. Daniel Carlson
| Field Goal Percentage | Years Active | Number of Teams |
| 87.200% | 2018-2021 | 2 |
From Colorado comes Daniel Carlson, one of the most famous NFL kickers, at least in the recent period. This 6-inch, 5-feet athlete went to Auburn and noticed several scouts. So, once he was ready to join the big league (2018), he was drafted by the Minnesota Vikings. The same year he signed for the Oakland/Las Vegas Raiders. Of course, he’s still playing for this team. Daniel got several awards and achieved a few accomplishments like a two-time NFL scoring leader and a second-team All-Pro. At this moment, he has made 125 field goal attempts scoring 109 of them. Simply put, Daniel’s FG success is set at 87.2%.
4. Chris Boswell
| Field Goal Percentage | Years Active | Number of Teams |
| 88.350% | 2015-2021 | 1 |
The time has come to reveal the 4th greatest kicker of all time. Chris Boswell was born in Texas in 1991. He’s an active player who started his college career at Rice, where he became the second-best player of all time. After spending two years as a reserve player for the Houston Texans and New York Giants, he finally found a team where he was appreciated – the Pittsburgh Steelers. The Steelers did the right thing because Chris had an FG% of 90.63% during his first season. The only season when Boswell was under 80% was in 2018, when he suffered an injury. For now, he has a field goal percentage of 88.35%.
3. Younghoe Koo
| Field Goal Percentage | Years Active | Number of Teams |
| 90.000% | 2017-2021 | 2 |
Who says that football players of Asian descent can’t be good kickers? Younghoe Koo is a South Korean athlete who moved to the USA in the sixth grade. Another exciting thing about Koo is that he turned 19 out of 20 field goal attempts into points in his final season in the Sun Belt Conference. He was playing for the Georgia Southern Eagles then. Younghoes’ professional career started in 2017 for the Los Angeles Chargers. Since 2019, he has been part of the Atlanta Falcons. It’s easy to find the FG percentage because he has scored 90 field goals after 100 attempts. You do the math!
2. Harrison Butker
| Field Goal Percentage | Years Active | Number of Teams |
| 90.123% | 2017-2021 | 1 |
Butt Kicker – that’s Harrison Butker nickname, and we all know why right? He’s an ice-cold killer on the field, and he has a last name that rhymes with the nickname. On top of that, he is a kicker. The public became aware of his performance when he played college football at Georgia Tech. But, Harrison became a nationwide attraction once he signed for the Kansas City Chiefs in 2017. Butker will definitely continue playing for many years, hoping to keep his record of 90.123% (field goal percentage). We should also note that he made 146 field goals until now.
1. Justin Tucker
| Field Goal Percentage | Years Active | Number of Teams |
| 91.061 | 2012-2021 | 1 |
The man, the hero, the legend – Justin Tucker! You can analyze his stats in many different ways, but the results will always be the same – he’s the best NFL kicker ever. When we wrote this, Tucker was at the peak of his career (32 years old). If he keeps playing in this way, he may earn many other recognitions. Another fun fact about Justin is that he played for just one team – the Baltimore Ravens (since 2012). In addition to being the most accurate kicker in NFL ever (91.061%), Tucker has also scored the longest field goal (66 yards). We can all agree that the National Football League is more entertaining when Justin is on the field.
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