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With just a week to go before the 2023 NFL draft officially kicks off, the Buffalo Bills front office is focused on figuring out which player they will select with their No. 27 overall pick, however, the team swerved to lock down a key player for the foreseeable future.
On Thursday, April 20, Fox Sports‘ Peter Schrager tweeted, “The Buffalo Bills and kicker Tyler Bass have agreed to terms on a 4 year extension worth up to $21 Million with $12.3 guaranteed, per sources,” news which caused a strong reaction on Twitter.
While several fans balked at the price the Bills paid to retain a kicker, others were thrilled to see Bass become one of the highest-paid kickers in the league. NFL analyst Ari Meirov approved of the Bills’ former sixth-round pick from the 2020 NFL Draft getting the bag. “[Bass] has made 85.6% of his FGs in his three years with the team. Now, a nice payday,” Meirov tweeted.
Bass, who drilled three game-winning field goals during the 2022 NFL season, made 48 of 50 extra point scores and nailed 27 of 31 field goal attempts, per Pro Football Reference. In 2020, he recorded the longest field goal made (54 yards) by a rookie, per the Bills PR.
One of Bass’ most impressive game-winning field goals this past season came against the Miami Dolphins as the snow poured from the sky in Orchard Park on December 18. The 26-year-old handed Buffalo the 32-29 win which clinched their ticket to the postseason.
The Bills Moved Earlier Than Expected to Extend Tyler Bass
Bass’ extension doesn’t come as a total surprise, but it did come earlier than expected, as he still has one year left on his rookie contract. The Buffalo News reporter Jay Skurski wrote of Bass’ contract situation earlier this month, “I wouldn’t expect anything to happen before the draft, but yes, there is a good possibility Beane signs Bass to an extension before September.”
“Bass has been excellent,” Skurski continued. “Kicking in Buffalo is simply a harder job than it is compared to most other NFL cities. Bass has shown he can do it. Re-signing him is one way for Beane to check something off his 2024 to-do list a little early.”
According to CBS Sports, Bass is now the fourth highest-paid kickers in the league behind Seahawks’ Jason Myers, Colts’ Matt Gay, and Ravens’ Justin Tucker.
Sean McDermott Loves Tyler Bass’ Swagger
While the Georgia Southern alum never attempted more than five field goals in a game during his four years in college and never made more than four in a game, the Bills drafted Bass as their No. 188 pick in the 2020 NFL Draft, which could’ve been a risky move, but head coach Sean McDermott saw something special in the 5-foot-10, 183-pound kicker.
During an appearance on Pat McAfee’s radio show in February 2021, McDermott said of Bass, “What I love about him is he’s got the one piece of eye black underneath the eye, he’s got a little bit of swagger, he’s got the flex after he has a big kick.
“He really did that in college and I was watching tape with Heath Farwell, our special teams coordinator, and said hey this is the guy. Then I saw the flex and was like ‘Hey, rewind that.’ Everyone wants a kicker that’s more than a kicker, he’s a football player. I think that really endears him to his teammates.”
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