Justin Tucker had a decision to make. Will it help him return to the field?

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Justin Tucker didn’t issue an apology Thursday or acknowledge any wrongdoing after the NFL suspended him 10 weeks for violating the league’s personal conduct policy.

Instead, in a statement released by his longtime agent, Rob Roche, the former Baltimore Ravens kicker stood by his previous denials and said he’s disappointed with the league’s decision. The statement also made clear that he will not appeal the decision “in order to put this difficult episode behind him and get back on the field as soon as possible.”

Thursday’s ruling by the NFL came after a four-month investigation following allegations from 16 Baltimore-area massage therapists via The Baltimore Banner that Tucker engaged in inappropriate sexual behavior during bodywork sessions from 2012 to 2016. Tucker has not faced criminal or civil charges, and the statute of limitations in Maryland makes either scenario highly unlikely.

The Ravens released the most accurate kicker in NFL history in early May after he starred for the team for more than a decade. Then came the ruling and a decision to be made. If he and his high-powered legal team made it known they planned to fight it, his status likely would have been unresolved for months.

The matter would have likely landed in the hands of Judge Sue Lewis Robinson, the hearing officer for alleged violations of the personal conduct policy. She would have been charged with making a ruling and then releasing the findings of the investigation. That process would have surely taken a lot more time and would have opened the door for a suspension longer than the 10-week ban Tucker accepted.

“We have advised Justin to accept this resolution and close this matter,” Roche said in the statement. “The people who know Justin best know his character and understand that while he remains fully committed to excellence as a football player, he is deeply dedicated to his most important lifetime roles as a father, husband and friend.”

Attorneys Michael Belsky and Catherine Dickinson, who represent 13 of Tucker’s accusers, praised the league’s investigation, calling it “incredibly thorough and thoughtful.” Dickinson said the league interviewed 15 of the accusers. Yet, Belsky said Friday at a news conference at the SBWD Law office, which is down the street from the Ravens’ M&T Bank Stadium, that Tucker’s refusal to acknowledge wrongdoing left “many of the victims, our clients, with the stain of a denial.”

“There was an opening here for an early discussion between Mr. Tucker and the victims and the NFL,” Belsky said. “There was a way that this could have happened and gone down in a way that was different than how it did. Unfortunately, Mr. Tucker dug in with his denials, and we are where we are today.”

Belsky was asked what’s next for his clients and said they were still digesting the results of the investigation, and any responding course of action was “TBD.”

Meanwhile, as a free agent, Tucker is free to sign with another team. He can participate in training camp and even kick in the preseason. However, he would officially revert to the reserve/suspended list on Aug. 26, roster cutdown day around the NFL. He wouldn’t be eligible for reinstatement until Nov. 11, two days before the official start of Week 11 and 10 days before his 36th birthday.

Justin Tucker’s 73.3 field goal percentage in 2024 was fourth-worst among kickers who played at least 10 games. (Greg Fiume / Getty Images)

Bringing Tucker into a training camp would generate questions and criticism for an organization and probably be a distraction that football decision-makers wouldn’t want to deal with in late July.

Most teams carry only one kicker. Signing Tucker now so he’ll be available in mid-November would send a clear message to a team’s current kicker that he almost certainly isn’t in the long-term plans.

The most recent version of Tucker as a kicker was a diminished one from the ridiculously high standard he set early in his career. Tucker had his worst NFL season in 2024, missing eight field goal attempts and two extra-point tries.

The Ravens stuck with him, and he had a strong finish to the season. But for the only time in his career, Tucker was one of the primary reasons Baltimore lost a few of its games, rather than being the prominent reason for winning. His 73.3 field goal percentage was fourth-worst among kickers who were active for more than 10 games.

But what if a contending team with an established and well-respected general manager and coach enters the second half of the season with major questions at one of the game’s most important positions? Year after year, in a league where the margin of victory and defeat is so small, promising seasons are sometimes made or lost on the foot of kickers.

Would a team view Tucker, a seven-time Pro Bowler, as the final piece to a championship puzzle? Would an established GM be willing to absorb the heat if he felt Tucker would help his team win games in December and January?

By not appealing, Tucker left that door ajar.

(Top photo: Scott Taetsch / Getty Images)

This news was originally published on this post .

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