At the beginning of the season, Buffalo Bills rookie kicker Tyler Bass looked shaky, but as the season has carried on the 6th round pick has righted his ways and is set to break a rookie franchise record that has stood for over half a century.
With 21 made field goals and 32 made extra points, Bass has tallied 95 total points this season and is closing on the Bills rookie record of 102 points set by Pete Gogolak in 1964.
During that season, Gogolak hit 45 of 46 extra point attempts and also made 19 of his 29 field goal attempts.
Over the course of his rookie season, the former Georgia Southern kicker has been up and down. In his first NFL game, Bass missed two of his four field goal attempts as the Bills beat the New York Jets, 27-12. He also hit six of eight field goals in Buffalo’s second matchup with the Jets on October 25. He hit field goals of 53, 48, 46, 37, 29, and 40 yards.
Bass has also caught fire as of late. In his past two games, he’s been perfect, hitting all six of his extra point attempts and all five of his field goal attempts. He also went perfect in Week 10 against the Arizona Cardinals when he hit three field goals from 50 yards or further.
His only miss in the last four games came on a 61-yard attempt against the Seattle Seahawks in Week 9.
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The Bills Made The Right Choice
Although he had a shaky start, Bass is proving that the Bills coaching staff made the right decision in training camp when they elected to go with a prolific rookie over one of the NFL’s most accurate kickers in Stephen Hauschka, who announced his retirement on Friday.
Throughout this season, Bass has kept his head high, has never wavered from his approach, and it has paid off.
Against the Cardinals, all of his three field goals came from 54 yards or longer and he hit a season-long 58-yard field goal as time expired in the first half to put the Bills up 16-9 heading into halftime.
Against the Los Angeles Chargers this past Sunday, Bass hit a 43-yard field goal with 3 minutes, 26 seconds left to put the Bills up 10. A miss at that point makes it a completely different game as the Chargers would have been within a score.
Bass Isn’t The Only Rookie Who Has Stepped Up
Any rookie who has stepped on the field for Buffalo this season has contributed in a big way.
Cornerback Dane Jackson came up big against the Jets in their second matchup of the season when Josh Norman couldn’t go. He also matched up against DeAndre Hopkins in Week 10 against the Cardinals.
Rookie CB Dane Jackson snags his first career interception at the perfect time 🙌 #BillsMafia #BUFvsNYJ
Wide receiver Gabriel Davis has also played a crucial role for the Bills this season. He’s currently tied for the team-lead with four receiving touchdowns, averages a team-high 16.1 yards per catch, and has also caught 22 passes for 354 yards this season.
Gabriel Davis took him up top 🙌 @DavisGB1 @BuffaloBills
📺 #LACvsBUF on CBS
Running back Zack Moss has also lived up to the hype after being drafted in the third round out of Utah. After missing three games earlier this year, Moss has caught fire in the backfield with fellow running back Devin Singletary and has rushed for 283 yards and three touchdowns on just 68 carries.
Defensively, AJ Epenesa has also caught on as of late in a limited role. He had two solo tackles against the Chargers this past Sunday.
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Bills Rookie is Set to Break a Longstanding Record