In August, Jacksonville Jaguars kicker Cam Little teased that his leg was strong enough to break the NFL’s record.
On Sunday, he did it for real.
Little’s 68-yard field goal in the second quarter against Las Vegas — inside the Raiders’ domed stadium — broke the record by two yards, exceeding the 66-yard kick by Baltimore’s Justin Tucker that had stood in the record books since 2021.
Little had shown such a kick was possible when he booted a 70-yard field goal during a preseason game in August. Because it was an exhibition, the kick did not officially count as a record.
Between that kick and Sunday’s Week 9 record, however, Little had actually struggled to convert long kicks during his second NFL season, making just four of his eight attempts from 40-plus yards, including one of three from 50-plus.
Little’s kick came amid a kicking renaissance in the NFL, where during the last two seasons kickers are making 50-plus yard field goals at a higher rate than any point in NFL history. One factor behind that rise is a new rule put in place this season that allowed teams to receive 60 “K-balls” — balls used exclusively by kickers — before the season began. Kickers can then work with those balls to break them in and make them as easy to kick, within the rules, as possible. Previously, teams would only be given three brand-new “K-balls” less than two hours before kickoff.
