New York Jets dig into their past, sign 40-year-old to help solve kicking woes
A lot of bad things happened to the Jets and their kicking game since. So, perhaps a reunion with the 40-year-old will bring some good karma back to One Jets Drive.
Or more likely, the Jets were desperate to find a dependable kicker after the underwhelming duo of Cade Davis and Harrison Mevis failed to impress so far in training camp.
No matter the underlying reason, Folk signed a one-year contract with the Jets on Tuesday after a successful tryout. Davis was released. Mevis remains on the roster, likely as insurance should Folk get hurt.
'Listen, he's a very established kicker in this league,' Jets coach Aaron Glenn said after practice. 'You go back and look at his stats from the past couple of years, they've been above board.
'I've said this from the beginning: anyone that can help us win games, man, we're going to take a look at that. He was available … and I'm happy he chose us.'
Glenn's not kidding about Folk's numbers being 'above board' recently. Despite his advanced age, Folk led the NFL in field goal percentage each of the past two seasons when he was with the Tennessee Titans. He converted 21 of 22 field goals last season (95.5 percent) and 29 of 30 (96.7 percent) in 2023.
There's still quite a bit of boom in Folk's right leg, too. He made 11 of 12 kicks from 50+ yards the past two years, including a 56-yarder last season that matched the longest of his career.
Folk did sustain an abdominal injury in 2024 and missed the final three games of the Titans season, though he's completely recovered by this point.
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Nick Folk signs up for reunion with Jets
After beginning his NFL career with three seasons as the Dallas Cowboys kicker, Folk played seven seasons for the Jets from 2010-16. His 729 points are second on the Jets' all-time list, trailing only Pat Leahy, who had 1,470 over 18 seasons in the Green and White.
His 56-yard field goal in 2010 was longest in Jets history until surpassed by Chandler Catanzaro's 57-yarder in 2017 and then Greg Zuerlein's 60-yard field goal in 2022.
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It's Zuerlein's recent demise which led to Folk's eventual reunion with the Jets. After two outstanding seasons in 2022 and 2023, the 37-year-old was injured and ineffective last season. Zuerlein appeared in only eight games. That led to a revolving door of five different kickers used by the Jets in 2024, eerily reminiscent of their woes at the position from 2017-21 — after Folk departed and before Zuerlein arrived.
Folk, who also kicked for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and New England Patriots, has 242 games of NFL experience. The Jets hope at least another full season of consistency remains in his powerful right leg.
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