Just the other day my mom shared a photo of my family and I at a Kansas City Chiefs game in October of 2017. Our faces in the picture didn't look super enthused, and my mom made the comment, "If only we could remember what was happening!"
I put on my detective hat and figured out what game it was. It was a Monday Night Football matchup between the Alex Smith-led Chiefs and Washington. The Chiefs won that night, but of course, I couldn't pinpoint exactly when our family picture was taken. Something I did discover: it happened to be Harrison Butker's first game as a Chief.
Few Chiefs fans will remember this (I certainly didn't), but Butker actually missed his first kick of the game. Maybe this is what the camera caught my family and me watching! I can only imagine how most Chiefs fans felt watching the newly signed kicker. (Remember we replaced the reliable Cairo Santos with this former Carolina practice squad player!)
But thankfully that missed kick wasn't a preview of what was to come. Instead, Dave Toub 'got his guy', and Butker has turned into one of the best kickers the Chiefs have ever had. I've been a longtime apologist of Butker, and have written about him here often.
Earlier this year I even argued that Kansas City should extend the kicker. Well, they should have listened, because his price tag isn't getting any cheaper.
During the Chiefs game against the Minnesota Vikings on Sunday, Harrison continued his perfect season. He's now 10 for 10 on field goals, and hasn't missed an extra point either. That's pretty big considering that's usually what people knock him for—even though he only missed three extra points last season and five over the past two years. (Read that again, haters.)
Yes, the man who owns the longest kick in Kansas City Chiefs history, and literally won them a Super Bowl should be on the roster until he's ready to call it quits. Find a better kicker in the NFL right now. You won't. Even Justin Tucker isn't playing as well as Butker is now.
In case you need anymore evidence of just how good Butker is, check out this stat directly from the Chiefs.
The 38-yard FG from K Harrison Butker gives him 802 career points. With 95 games played so far in his career, his 802 points are tied for the 3rd most points in a kicker's first 100 career games.
— Chiefs Communications (@ChiefsPR) October 8, 2023
I don't know how long Butker can stay perfect this season, but the truth of the matter remains: when it comes to kicking footballs, nobody is better than the Butt Kicker.