If you’re looking for a kicker to hit from range, Chris Boswell is as strong a choice as any. That’s not just the view of Pittsburgh Steelers’ fans but FanDuel’s recent top-ten list ranking the best long-distance kickers in NFL history. Boswell took the No. 3 spot, one ahead of Baltimore Ravens’ Justin Tucker, and only finishing behind Matt Prater and Sebastian Janikowski.
Here’s the entire list.
It puts Boswell second among active kickers behind Prater, whose career could be coming to an end. Beating out Tucker is no small feat, considering his reputation prior to a shaky 2024 season. Known for years as the best kicker from 50-plus yards, Tucker is still capable of hitting from virtually anywhere, but the numbers give the edge to Boswell.
For his career, Boswell is a sizzling 43-of-52, 82.7-percent, from 50-plus yards. Compare that to Tucker, who has made just two-thirds of his kicks, 64-of-96 from that distance. In fairness, Tucker has been asked to attempt longer field goals that lend themselves to higher chances of missing, but Tucker has struggled in the 50-59 range the past two seasons. Eight of his nine misses from 50-plus the last two years have come from 50-something yards, including misses from 50, 53 (three times), and 56-yards.
Comparatively, Boswell has been near-perfect, going 19-of-22 from 50-plus yards over that same span. One of those misses came from 62 yards at the end of the half against the Los Angeles Chargers. He’s made a 57-yarder in each of the last two years and, for his career, has a pair of makes from 59 yards.
Boswell might not have the strongest leg among those ten names, but his consistency and accuracy are remarkable even in a golden age of kickers. His ability to repeat the same stroke and hit the ball so cleanly each time, no matter the circumstances, makes him invaluable. Twice in 2024, he produced all of the Steelers’ points in victories, kicking six field goals to beat the Atlanta Falcons and Baltimore Ravens. The Falcons game included his 57-yarder, standing on their logo as he booted the ball through.
With another strong season, Boswell made the Pro Bowl and became the first Steelers kicker to be named first-team All-Pro.
Prater and Janikowski are regarded as two of the best deep-range kickers ever. Prater’s made a ridiculous 81 kicks from 50-plus in his long career, with multiple makes from 62 and a career-best 64 yards in 2013. At the time, that boot set an NFL record and broke the 63-yard barrier that seemingly no kicker could break through. Justin Tucker’s 66-yarder in 2021 would break Prater’s mark, which is still the NFL’s current record.
Janikowski was the rare first-round kicker who lived up to lofty expectations. He made 58 field goals of 50-plus in his career and had unlimited range. His long was 63 yards in 2011, tying the NFL record at the time. In 2011, he made seven kicks from 50-plus.
Despite his production, Boswell doesn’t carry the reputation as a cannon-legged kicker. On first instinct, slotting him on the podium feels high. But digging into the numbers and looking objectively, he’s earned his place among the NFL’s greats. With several years ahead of him, he’s set to break Steelers’ records and go down as the franchise’s greatest kicker and potentially one of the best ever to suit up.
