Jets Sign Nick Folk

The Jets have signed their former kicker, Nick Folk, back to the team after coming in to try out against Harrison Mevis for the kicker position. The 40-year-old kicker recently played the last two seasons with the Tennessee Titans, completing 50 out of 52 field goal attempts, as he missed one kick a season. Many Jets fans will remember him with former Head Coach Rex Ryan during his first two seasons when the Jets reached consecutive AFC Conference Championship appearances.

Everyone will remember his game-winning field goal in the Wild Card Round as the Jets gained playoff revenge at Lucas Oil Stadium in downtown Indianapolis against Peyton Manning and the Colts, when he kicked a 32-yard field goal that started at the left upright, then curled into the middle to get the victory by a final score of 17-16 and put the Jets into the Division round of the playoffs at the New England Patriots on January 8th, 2011.

Folk’s first tenure with the Jets lasted seven seasons, from 2010 to 2016, during which he completed 175 field goals out of 213 attempts for an 82.2% success rate. This will be Folk’s 18th season in the NFL, back with the Jets. In 17 seasons, he has played for the Dallas Cowboys for his first three seasons, then spent one season with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, followed by four seasons with the New England Patriots, before moving to the Titans for his last two years.

He is the first Jets kicker since Pat Leahy in 1984 who converted five field goals in a home win against the Minnesota Vikings on October 11th. In the next game, he holds the Jets record for a 56-yard Field Goal winner on the road against the Denver Broncos back in 2010. That record has now been taken over by Chandler Cantanzaro for 57 yards at the Cleveland Browns in 2017, then Greg Zuerlein broke it with a 60-yard field goal in 2022.

Now at 40, the hope is that he continues to kick well for the Jets and convert points at the most crucial time during games when everything fell apart all of last year. The Jets need points anytime on the field, and it’s a crucial part of their new game plans under head coach Aaron Glenn.