Why Bengals Kicker Evan McPherson Said He Probably Wouldn't Have Made Sunday's Record-Breaking FG as a Rookie

CINCINNATI – Evan McPherson had one of the best rookie seasons by a kicker in NFL history, but he admitted the 63-yard, franchise-record field goal he kicked in the Cincinnati Bengals’ loss Sunday was one he probably wouldn’t have made in 2021.

McPherson did too much thinking as a rookie. Or, perhaps more accurate, too much guessing.

He admitted there were times he wasn’t ready to kick because he didn’t think he would be asked to do it.

Late in the first half Sunday against the New England Patriots would have been one of those times.

The Bengals got the ball back at their own 18-yard line with 18 seconds left in the second quarter.

But a 21-yard run by Chase Brown and a 16-yard pass from Joe Flacco to Tee Higgins got McPherson to the edge of his range.

“That’s something I struggled with as a rookie, where you see there’s only 20 seconds left and you’re like, ‘Oh, there’s no way we’re going to kick,” McPherson said. “Something I learned throughout the years is never take time off and never let your mind wander, because in a blink of an eye you can be thrown out there for a long field goal.”

There have been 88 field goals of at least 63 yards attempted.

McPherson’s was only the 14th that was good.

Of the 14 made, 12 have come since 2011 as kickers continue to get stronger and better and have the advantage of using specialized kicking balls.

McPherson attempted a 67-yarder in Week 6 at Green Bay, and he made it for what would have tied the NFL record.

But Packers head coach Matt LaFleur called timeout just before the snap, and McPherson’s second attempt missed.

Sunday, he joined the 63-yard club.

“I’ve always thought about it,” McPherson said. “It would be cool to get one on the other side of the field. I’m just blessed to be put in that situation, that opportunity. The coaches trust me to go out there and make it.”

Had McPherson made the 67-yarder in Green Bay, he would have owned the NFL record for all of three weeks as Jacksonville’s Cam Little hit a 68-yarder on Nov. 2.

The first man to make a 63-yarder was Tom Dempsey in 1970, and that record stood for more than four decades.

So even though McPherson’s 63-yarder didn’t give him a share of the record, it was a number he always thought about as the standard growing up.

“It's very meaningful because I mean as a kid going through college and high school, like you always dreamed of those situations,” he said. “I hit the 60-yarder in high school and had the state record for a little bit until my little brother broke it.”

This is the third time McPherson has put his name atop the franchise list.

In 2021, McPherson hit a 58-yarder just before halftime in Denver to break Randy Bullock’s record of 57.

The following year, McPherson hit a 59-yarder midway through the first quarter of a 23-20, season-opening loss to the Steelers.

Last year after McPherson got hurt, Cade York came in and tied his record with a 59-yarder against his former team, the Browns.

“I gave him a little bit of grief about it, like, ‘You come in for a few weeks and tie my franchise record,’” McPherson said with a laugh. “But no, I was happy for him.”

Sunday, McPherson reclaimed sole possession of the franchise record with 63-yarder.

But he said it was the second-best kick in the stadium that day.

“I think he topped my kick for sure,” McPherson said of New England’s Andres Borrageles, who hit a 52-yarder with 1:51 left to push his team’s lead from three points to six.

“Just because of the point in the game and it made it a six-point game, so we needed to go down and get a touchdown and not just a field goal. That was a really impressive kick by him.”

McPherson is 17 of 20 this year, with his three misses being from 67 at Green Bay, 56 also against the Packers and a 54 against Chicago in the K-ball fiasco.