“One-Off” For Chase McLaughlin
September 10th, 2025
Kicker Chase McLaughlin.
Is it cool to talk about or write about a struggling kicker?
As a Bucs fan, Joe is unsure.
During The Lost Decade, fans accumulated a lot of baggage when it came to kickers. Kicker after kicker came through One Buc Palace and Joe hopes the chief kicking scout from those years is now farming lentils in western Canada.
But then Buccaneers Ring of Honor general manager Jason Licht brought in Ryan Succop in 2020. He became a Super Bowl-winning kicker who held down the fort for three seasons before the Bucs turned to Chase McLaughlin, who delivered two years of spectacular kicking in 2023 and 2024.
Joe easily could argue McLaughlin has been the best kicker in team history.
But then Sunday happened. McLaughlin missed a critical late-game extra point in Atlanta after missing a field goal earlier in the game.
McLaughlin screwing up is so damn rare, frankly, Joe doesn’t know how to handle it.
Todd Bowles told the Buccaneers Radio Network yesterday that he plans to talk to McLaughlin this week. For now, the head coach is treating Sunday as a mirage.
“You know, he’s usually pretty reliable and pretty accurate so we gonna just chalk this up as a one-off right there,” Bowles said of McLaughlin’s rough day. “But he’s been reliable for us for a long time now, so we’re just gonna trust it’s not gonna happen again.”
There’s really no other way Bowles can view McLaughlin’s struggles. The game was in a dome, so weather was no factor, and McLaughlin kicked during throughout the preseason.
September 10th, 2025 at 2:05 pm
Kickers! They are all headcases. Eventually it seems to catch up with them and they get the Yips.
September 10th, 2025 at 2:08 pm
GOLFERS GET IT
Your mind is a mother*r. 1 bad shot usually leads to 2. 2-3 bad shots can lead to a horrible round.
You fail in your mind. Doubt > overthink > overcorrect > finished. Ask Roberto Aguayo about this. The most accurate kicker in NCAA history still has PTSD.
FB Kickers are Golfers. It’s all mental at that leve. Chase has the ability but is he screwed mentally. He needs a get right game. Fingers crossed.
September 10th, 2025 at 2:12 pm
I for one have a lot of faith in CM4. This guy is the best kicker the Buc’s have had! He will come back strong in Houston! Perhaps even nail several 50+yarders and the game winner!
September 10th, 2025 at 2:21 pm
Can’t Bucs depend on an extra point, bare minimum from a Kicker? I for one don’t want Field Goals, I want TD’s and the Kicker nailing the extra point.
September 10th, 2025 at 2:33 pm
I think he should not do the Kickoffs.
September 10th, 2025 at 2:44 pm
I hope its not the Yips. Positively though he did miss 2 extra points last year. He did fine after those misses. One against the Eagles and one against the Giants. It happens.
September 10th, 2025 at 2:47 pm
He has a new holder this year, and i suspect they have to get used to each other. During the game it looked like the field goal miss had the ball with the laces to the side and not out. The ball position was not shown on the extra point miss.
If this is an issue, I’m sure our excellent special teams coach will figure it out and get it fixed. As Ray Finkel would tell you – “Laces OUT”!!!!!!
September 10th, 2025 at 2:52 pm
Chase has been a strong kicker. Happy that Coo Coo Cachoo missed. If he hadn’t and they won, we would be having a different conversation for sure.
Agree with BakerFan too. It’s hard when the kicker has all that stress in making the goal or the team could lose. Need the TDs.
September 10th, 2025 at 2:52 pm
Agree about not having him kickoff. A tired leg is a no-go.
September 10th, 2025 at 3:07 pm
he has been money in the bank so far. hopefully only misses another one or two this year.
September 10th, 2025 at 3:28 pm
A shut down defense in crunch time would also help everyone de-stress a little.
We don’t have that.
September 10th, 2025 at 3:55 pm
Kickers can have off days and that’s all it is, lets hope that’s the case. But I certainly wouldn’t start panicking about it yet.
Also, was there something strange going on in the stadium? Both kickers struggled quite a bit, did they have a leak in the sphincter like roof, causing an updraft and some odd winds on the field or something? I don’t assume that was an issue since someone would have mentioned it, but it’s worth mentioning, if for no other reason than to remind people of Atlanta’s very expensive sphincter roof.
September 10th, 2025 at 4:02 pm
Both kickers were impacted having to do kickoffs. They are using a totally different preshot routine for their kickoffs than field goals and the bad habits from the kickoffs impacted field goals. McLaughlin needs to treat kickoffs like field goals and follow that same routine.
September 10th, 2025 at 5:25 pm
Why has no said it’s possible Dixon, the holder was at fault? Not saying he was, but there are three specialists involved. Longsnapper, holder, kicker.
September 10th, 2025 at 5:26 pm
September 10th, 2025 at 6:14 pm
I was floored that Koo missed for Falcons. I had no idea that he would miss.i flat out could not believe it.
September 10th, 2025 at 6:15 pm
Morten Anderson… Ice King… No yips, kicked until he was just too old.
IMO, Chase will be fine. Every Bucs has had an off day at some point.
Some Bucs from the past, every day was an off day. 😕
September 10th, 2025 at 6:43 pm
It could be the turf since both kickers missed. Koo struggles there a lot.
September 10th, 2025 at 7:07 pm
oh nooo…we don’t talk about fight club…
“The first rule of Fight Club is that you do not talk about Fight Club.”
September 10th, 2025 at 7:21 pm
Joe, we’re gonna be pi$$ed off if you’ve jinxed our kicker.
September 10th, 2025 at 8:12 pm
When i think of mental things, I always think of chuck knoblauch, a former gold glove winner lost the ability to throw from 2nd base to 1st bas for the Yankees. When you lose confidence, the mind is awful.
September 10th, 2025 at 9:42 pm
The last game just showed that it was not a good day for either kicker. Both of which have been pretty good.
September 10th, 2025 at 10:10 pm
the first week of this season has been booty awful for kickers throughout the NFL. I have no idea why, maybe just bad luck/variance
September 11th, 2025 at 1:27 am
Not worried….Worried…
Go Chase!
Go Bucs!
September 11th, 2025 at 6:20 am
Mac the Kicker had a bad day, it happens . The guy is $$$$ & I think he goes back to being au(toe)matic i’d be more concerned if the (A TL) kicker hadn’t missed the last kick. Maybe the big A/Cs in the dome were causing some type problems IDK. but i agree with Coach Bowles let him kick. He’ll be fine. He’s a above average outdoor in the weather kicker & we are a outdoor team. GO BUCS!!!!