Evan McPherson now officially has a contract out into the future that matches his long-range kicking prowess, and Bengals special teams Darrin Simmons has gone the distance with him.
Simmons, the NFL's longest-tenured kicking game coach, has seen the future, and it is McPherson.
"He's changed the way I think about the game and how we score points," Simmons said. "His ability to hit long field goals has really opened up our views on how we can approach the game offensively. I feel very comfortable with his range in the mid to upper 50s. That's just how the position has evolved over the course of time. Now 50-yard field goals, we count on those.
"We don't have to hold our breath. Are we going to get it there? Are we going make it? He has a legitimate chance to make a mid-to-upper 50-yarder and even over 60 yards. It changes the way Zac (Taylor) and Joe (Burrow) and the offense can think about what yard line they have to get to at any point in the game. That yard line has just been moved back over time."
McPherson met the media before Monday's practice in the wake of signing his $16.5-million extension through 2027 and says he knows he can hit an NFL-record 68-yarder. He knows because he did it last month at a camp of NFL kickers.
"I would love to attempt it. We have had a couple of opportunities in the preseason we passed up on, but I think the one I could have had in the Bucs game we ended up getting the first down instead of settling for the 58," McPherson said of a miss in the preseason opener. "The other one I think was fourth-and-1 in the last game where it was a 63-yarder. I would love to attempt one and just kind of see how it is to get out there and whale away at one."
That's how McPherson got here. Down range. He already has the most career 50-yard field goals in Bengals history, and those 21 field goals of at least 50 yards are the most by any NFL kicker in his first three seasons. He's also tied with Pittsburgh's Chris Boswell and Arizona's Matt Prater for most 50-yarders in the last three years.
Simmons' first kicker in Cincinnati, Shayne Graham, hit nine field goals of at least 50 yards on 18 attempts in seven seasons. McPherson, who didn't miss any under 50 yards last season, led the league in 2023 with a dozen attempts of 50-plus yards.
Simmons says he doesn't have to motivate McPherson with tape of the Justin Tuckers (history's most accurate kicker) and the Harrison Butkers (the richest kicker in history) of the world.
"He already knows. He's very attuned. He's usually telling me what happened around the league," Simmons said. "He watches every field goal, every kick from around league. I think that's what the good ones do."
McPherson has made all 19 of his field-goal attempts in the postseason, second on the all-time list to begin a career behind Robbie Gould's 29. He thinks that's where the legacy lies.
"Adam Vinatieri, Morten Andersen, those two guys weren't necessarily the longest, but they were the most consistent," McPherson said. "And with Justin, obviously. he's the most consistent in NFL history. He just happens to have the longest as well. I think it's coming through in the clutch in those big moments is probably you're remembered for the most."
Other Notes
_Bengals head coach Zac Taylor said before practice Monday that backup quarterback Jake Browning (rib) won't work this week. Taylor has yet to make an announcement on who is playing, but that probably means Logan Woodside gets the start in Thursday's Paycor Stadium preseason finale (8 p.m.-Amazon Prime).
_Defensive end Sam Hubbard (knee) won't participate in Tuesday's joint practice against the Colts, but he's returning to individual drills Monday.
_Wide receiver Kendric Pryor (finger) is out this week.
