John Harbaugh talks about 'complex,' 'complicated' decision to cut Justin Tucker amid sexual misconduct allegations
John Harbaugh spoke with media on Wednesday about releasing Justin Tucker for the first time. ()
(Content warning: This story contains depictions of alleged inappropriate sexual behavior.)
The Baltimore Ravens released five-time All-Pro kicker Justin Tucker on May 6 amid allegations from 16 women that he engaged in sexual misconduct during massage therapy sessions.
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On Wednesday, head coach John Harbaugh addressed the decision for the first time while speaking with media.
Like with the team's official statement, Harbaugh declined to directly address the allegations. He described the process as "complex" and "complicated" and ultimately characterized Tucker's release as a "football decision."
"It was a complex decision-making process," Harbaugh told reporters. ... "You're talking about arguably the best kicker in the history of the game. Like we said, it's multi-layered, it's complicated.
"In the end, it all comes back to what you have to do to get ready for your team to play the first game. I think if you step back and you take a look at all the issues and all the ramifications, you can understand that we've got to get our football team ready. And we've got to have a kicker ready to go.
"That was the move that we decided to make. In that sense, it's a football decision."
Tucker is accused of engaging in sexual misconduct on separate occasions between 2012-16 at eight different spas in the Baltimore area. The allegations first surfaced publicly in January in a report from the Baltimore Banner.
From the Banner, in reporting subsequent allegations:
"Their allegations are largely similar to those of the women who came forward earlier, including that he had an erection for most of the massage, intentionally and repeatedly exposed his genitals and brushed some of the therapists' thighs with his fingers. One of the seven new women said he left what appeared to be ejaculate on the massage table after his session."
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Tucker does not face criminal charges and has denied the allegations.
'I maintain I did not act inappropriately at any point before, during, or after a professional bodywork treatment session," Tucker wrote in a statement addressing the allegations.
Tucker is regarded as one of the greatest kickers in football history and had been with the Ravens for his entire 12-season career after connecting on 90.9% of his field-goal attempts as a rookie during Baltimore's run to the Super Bowl championship in 2012. Before the allegations, he was a well-respected member of the Baltimore community.
Tucker is also coming off the worst season of his career in which he connected on a career-low 73.3% of his field-goal attempts, well below his career success rate of 89.1%. When the Ravens released him earlier in May, general manager Eric DeCosta described the call as a "football decision."
"Sometimes football decisions are incredibly difficult, and this is one of those instances," DeCosta said, per a Ravens statement. "Considering our current roster, we have made the tough decision to release Justin Tucker."
Nine days before releasing Tucker, the Ravens selected Arizona kicker Tyler Loop in the sixth round of the NFL Draft. They've since brought in undrafted rookie John Hoyland out of Wyoming for competition.
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