Jake Moody chose Falcons over Ravens, and Atlanta hopes he solves kicking woes
FLOWERY BRANCH — Craig Aukerman always keeps a “ready list.”
Be it in case of emergency or, in this instance, a decision to move on from the incumbent, the Falcons’ special teams coordinator has the names of several kickers handy.
So when the Falcons’ front office approached him earlier this week with a name and a question, he didn’t hesitate. General manager Ian Cunningham and his front-office staff identified Jake Moody as a solution to Atlanta’s kicking woes. They wanted Aukerman’s approval.
“Do you like him?” they asked Aukerman.
“Absolutely,” Aukerman responded.
Aukerman went back and reviewed film from Moody’s past stops — the Bears, Commanders, Ravens and 49ers — and wrote a quick scouting report. The Falcons signed off. They offered Moody a spot.
Then, they waited.
Unwanted for a month midseason and later stashed on the Ravens’ practice squad, Moody suddenly found two offers on the table.
Baltimore, which placed kicker Tyler Loop on injured reserve last week and promoted Moody for its previous game, wanted him on its active roster. So did Atlanta. Stadium conditions — Atlanta plays in a dome; Baltimore doesn’t — weren’t a deal breaker for the man who’d never played for a team with an indoor stadium.
Moody mulled. Moody decided. Moody moved to Atlanta.
“I just did what I thought was the best for me,” Moody said, “and my future.”
In Baltimore, Moody would’ve been Loop’s seat-warmer. In Atlanta, it’s his show. He replaces veteran kicker Nick Folk, who the Falcons released Tuesday morning after an underwhelming first nine games of the season.
The NFL’s most-accurate kicker each of the past three years, Folk went only 13-for-18 on field goals this season, the fourth-worst rate in the league among those with at least 10 tries. He also missed an extra point. The final straw came in the Falcons’ 34-17 loss to the Bengals on Nov. 8 in Madrid, where he missed a kick inside 40 yards — a 38-yard attempt — for the first time since 2017.
Falcons coach Kevin Stefanski and Aukerman had publicly supported Folk long enough. They trusted his practice performance and pregame results, only to see it not translate during games. At last, they decided to move on.
“Nick Folk is an outstanding human being,” Stefanski said. “I’ve enjoyed being around him. I’ve enjoyed just picking his brain on football. But just felt like this was the best thing for our football team in this moment.”
Now, the Falcons hope Moody puts an end to their recent string of kicker chaos. After the previous staff rolled through three kickers last season, Cunningham and Stefanski brought in Folk, who missed three field goals combined dating back to 2023. It was a logical move on paper that didn’t net the desired benefit on the field.
Moody, 26, has an eight-game opportunity to cement himself as the Falcons’ kicking solution moving forward. He believes he’s ready to capitalize and elevate the unit with help from long snapper Liam McCullough and holder Jake Bailey.
“I feel very confident,” Moody said. “I know that Liam and Jake, they’re savvy vets. They’re great at what they do. So, coming into a room like this, it makes my life really easy. There’s nothing to worry about as far as the operation. So, yeah, I feel very confident.”
There was a point not too long ago where Moody didn’t feel so confident.
Since 2010, only one kicker has been drafted higher than Moody, who went No. 99 overall to the San Francisco 49ers after an illustrious college career in which he became the first player in Michigan history to win the Lou Groza Award, given annually to the nation’s best kicker.
But his tenure in San Francisco lasted only one game into his third season. He was waived after making only one of three field goals in Week 1, ending a 32-game experience where he made 46 of 62 field goals, a 74.2% clip.
Devastated, Moody returned home. He wasn’t there long. Three days later, his phone rang. “Before I even had time to figure out what to do,” he said, the Bears signed him to their practice squad. His career changed. He rediscovered himself.
“Obviously, it sucks getting cut,” Moody said. “I think everything kind of happens for a reason in life, whether it be good or bad. Sometimes, the door closes, another one opens, and for me, I feel like I regained a lot of confidence in myself and my abilities.
“So, I think it was a good thing in the long run. It might sound weird to say that, but I think it definitely helped my career trajectory.”
Moody spent a month on the Bears’ practice squad, then played twice in place of injured kicker Cairo Santos. He made eight of his nine attempts, including a game-winner in his Bears debut.
The Commanders signed him to their active roster less than a month later. In six games, he made 10 of 11 field goals with a long of 56 yards. After losing a kicking competition to undrafted rookie Drew Stevens this summer, Washington released Moody.
The 6-foot-1, 210-pounder landed on the Ravens’ practice squad. He made a 53-yard field goal and his lone extra point attempt in his first — and last — appearance in Baltimore, which came in a loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars on Nov. 5.
All told, since departing San Francisco, Moody has made 19 of 21 field goals and 14 of 15 extra points. He credits the turnaround to his time on various practice squads, which gave him a chance to work on himself while not dealing with the pressure and spotlight that usually follows kickers on game days.
“I got to actually kind of focus on my process, focus on practicing,” Moody said, “and regain that confidence that I had for myself.”
Moody estimated he kicked 50 footballs in his first two practices with the Falcons. He only needed a couple before feeling comfortable. “It’s like riding a bike,” he said.
He last kicked in Mercedes-Benz Stadium in the 2018 Peach Bowl and remembers it being “the coolest stadium of all time.” He plans to get there early before the Falcons (3-6) host the Kansas City Chiefs (6-2) at 1 p.m. Sunday, both to get acclimated but also take in the sights. It’s the start of new beginnings — again — but with a chance for much more.
In the midst of a self-described “wild year,” Moody hopes Atlanta provides stability. The Falcons hope Moody will do the same. The two sides are meeting each other from a place of optimism — and with belief their pairing can prove mutually beneficial in the long run.
“This year’s been all over the place,” Moody said, “but I’m still feeling very good.”