Win Probability Added: +69.08
NEP: +5.12
The life of a kicker is hard. Your successes are expected and your failures are magnified. The Cincinnati Bengals already went through one kicker collapse in 2016, cutting veteran Mike Nugent in favor of the thunder-legged Randy Bullock.
Bullock hasn’t been the most accurate kicker in league history, but has nailed a sizable 68 percent of his career attempts over 40 yards. He’s no stranger to big situations, but Week 16 got on top of him.
Though it’s not like the Bengals had anything to play for, a consolation victory would’ve been nice.
They had it all dialed up, with five seconds left and trailing by just two points. A 43-yard kick is a cakewalk for Bullock, but he seemed to stumble before the snap and then overcompensated and swung the ball wide right of the uprights. The Bengals earned a meaningless loss and Bullock’s gaffe sent his old team, the Houston Texans, to the postseason.