Philadelphia Eagles: Jake Elliott is back to (almost) automatic

If the Philadelphia Eagles could have released Jake Elliott heading into the 2021 NFL season, they probably would have.

After becoming one of the best practice squad signees in recent memory and kicking his way to a very lucrative extension, Elliott was about as effective as the rest of the Eagles’ roster in 2020 and put some serious murkiness into the waters of his future.

If Elliott continued to struggle, the Eagles would surely have to look into other options to maintain maximum offensive potency, but when his release would straddle the cap with $3.57 million more in dead money than simply keeping him around for one more season, retaining his services felt incredibly predictable for a team who wasn’t expecting to contend anyway.

Well, fortunately for everyone involved, Jake Elliott is still a member of the Philadelphia Eagles, and outside of one miss and blocked kick, he’s been all but automatic.

Philadelphia Eagles fans can finally breathe easy when Jake Elliott enters the game.

When the Philadelphia Eagles called Jake Elliott’s number at the top of the second quarter in Week 2, the goal was simple: 3 more points on the board.

On paper, it made sense; Elliott had just knocked in a 45 yarder on the previous drive, and after watching Miles Sanders turn third-and-1 into fourth-and-3, the idea of going for it at the San Francisco 49ers’ 32 was a bit too rich for Nick Sirianni‘s blood.

Better, he likely assumed, to get points on the board than risk giving the Niners better than a touch backfield position and a momentum swing.

… unfortunately, Sirianni neither got to have his cake nor eat it, too, as Javon Kinlaw blocked Elliott’s boot, and despite his best efforts, Dallas Goedert wasn’t able to advance the recovered kick for a first down.

Now think back to another home game a few weeks later, when the Eagles welcomed their Super Bowl 52 foe, Tom Brady, and his new team, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, to town for a Week 6 shootout.

That game came one week after the Eagles halted their losing streak at three with a commanding win over the then-surging Carolina Panthers and marked what could have been a commanding win for a team looking for an identity.

Instead, very little went right for the Birds, as Brady came three yards short of throwing for 300 yards, the offensive line gave up two sacks, and Jalen Hurts arguably turned in his worst performance of the season, maybe as a pro in general.

Even Elliott wasn’t immune to the ugly evening, as he missed his lone attempt from the field wide-right and left the Eagles with a 14 point deficit with most of the fourth quarter left to play.

Why, you may ask, did I feel the need to recreate these two seemingly random lowlights from the Eagles’ early-season woes? Well, because they mark the last two times Elliott missed a field goal, or an extra point for that matter, in a game this season.

Since that fateful day versus Tampa Bay, Elliott is a perfect 11-11 on field goal attempts, including makes from 52 and 50 in Weeks 10 and 11, respectively, and has made all 17 of his extra-point attempts. Elliott has also, for that matter, logged touchbacks at a career-high 64.2 percent clip, with an average kickoff length of 62 yards.

Now granted, is some of that a byproduct of good luck? Sure. The Eagles haven’t played any horrible weather games so far this season and have only asked Elliott to attempt three kicks from 50-plus yards, but still, after only making 73.7 percent of his attempts from the field and 92.3 percent on extra points, no one is going to quibble with 90 percent accuracy from the field and a perfect extra point percentage.

If Elliott can keep his current numbers up over the rest of the season, he might just earn a spot in the Pro Bowl for the first time since entering the NFL as a fifth-round pick out of Memphis in 2018.

Fun fact: The Cincinnati Bengals have had four different kickers kick kicks for them since waiving Elliott in 2017. Needless to say, not ideal.

Through the first 11 weeks of the 2021 NFL season, 41 different kickers have attempted either a field goal or extra point. Some teams, like the New Orleans Saints, have cycled through multiple kicking options and may once again make a swap when Wil Lutz is healthy enough to return from IR. The Philadelphia Eagles, by contrast, have only used Jake Elliott, and I’m sure the team is more than happy with the results.