Chiefs Keep Butker as Starter After Signing Tucker

Kansas City is sticking with Harrison Butker as its kicker after signing Justin Tucker to the practice squad. Special teams coordinator Dave Toub said the move is intended to help Butker improve, not replace him before the Chiefs’ next game against the Denver Broncos.

Butker has made 11 of 16 field-goal attempts this season, including two misses in the Chiefs’ 20-3 loss to the Seattle Seahawks. His 68.8% success rate is the lowest of his career. Toub called a missed 45-yard attempt against Seattle a costly error in a close-game situation.

Toub said Butker made all 10 of his field-goal attempts at practice despite wind gusts of 28 mph, with Tucker present. He also said the two kickers have exchanged advice and that Tucker could offer Butker useful perspective.

Kansas City tested Tucker and two other kickers in a 30-kick workout. Toub said Tucker made every attempt, including seven from beyond 50 yards and one from 60, and that 60% of his kicks passed through a six-foot-wide area at the center of the uprights. The Chiefs signed him after the workout; he is not set to kick against Denver.

Tucker missed the 2025 season while serving a 10-game suspension under the NFL’s personal conduct policy. The suspension followed allegations of sexual misconduct and inappropriate behavior during massage sessions, which Tucker denied. Butker remains the starter, though Toub said he must make kicks in critical situations.