Start Tyler Loop over Chase McLaughlin — Week 1 Start/Sit Verdict

Start Loop — the red-zone opportunity and game script edges are too wide to ignore.

Tyler Loop gets more red-zone stalls to kick from (1.9 to 1.4 per game) and plays in the better game script (26.5 implied team points to 23.5). No signal favors McLaughlin this week. The gap is comfortable.

Chase McLaughlin

K14TBvs CIN

8.48.48.4 Projected Points

Toss-Up· medium

Tyler Loop

K12BALvs IND

8.58.58.5 Projected Points

Start· high

Why Chase McLaughlin

Toss-Up· medium

Starting placekicker with big-leg range and a 65-yard career long. Reliable from distance, though his 84.9% career accuracy sits around league average.

K15 at 8.4 points: elite 84% accuracy and 65-yard range, but only 2.0 projected FG attempts and no weather forecast at an open roof

2.0 FG tries projected, right at the 2.0 league median this week.
TB's offense stalls in the red zone 1.4 times a game (2025) — that's where kicker points come from.
Vegas has TB at 23.5 points as 3.5-point dogs.
84% on field goals (2025), with a 50-plus make in 7 games.

The call

The leg is a real edge — 84% (32/38) with a 50-plus make in 7 games and a 65-yard long means he cashes attempts other kickers don't even take.
Volume is the problem: 1.8 made on just 2.0 attempts plus 2.1 extra points off a 23.5 implied total is a median K line, which is why he sits at K15 rather than in the start-every-week tier.
1.4 red-zone stalls per game is a healthy source of drive-ending kicks, and he's locked in as PK1 with no designation, so there's no role or availability risk.
Tips to start if the forecast at the open roof comes in calm; if wind shows up, a top-12 kicker in a dome is the cleaner play.

Why Tyler Loop

Start· high

Starting placekicker who handles kickoffs. Accurate inside 50 but limited range, hitting just 1-of-4 from 50-plus as a rookie with a long of 52.

K10 with a 26.5 implied total, 88% accuracy (30/34) and 1.9 red-zone stalls per game — 1.7 FGs plus 2.6 XPs is a top-10 floor.

2.0 FG tries projected, right at the 2.0 league median this week.
BAL's offense stalls in the red zone 1.9 times a game (2025) — that's where kicker points come from.
Vegas has BAL at 26.5 points as 3.5-point favorites.
88% on field goals (2025), with a 50-plus make in 1 game.

The call

A 26.5 implied team total is among the best kicker environments on the board: 2.6 projected extra points give him a scoring floor before a single field goal.
Baltimore stalls in the red zone 1.9 times per game, which converts drives into the 2.0 attempts projected here — volume plus touchdown equity is the ideal kicker mix.
He's 30-of-34 (88%) on the season and locked in as PK1 with no injury designation; the retractable roof removes most weather downside even with no forecast yet.
Only real cap is the 50-plus profile — one make from that range with a long of 52 — so the upside is volume-driven rather than bonus-leg driven.

Latest on Loop

Minter backs Loop as Ravens add kicker competition in Moody

Baltimore signed Jake Moody to the practice squad three days after Tyler Loop missed two kicks in the preseason finale.

ESPN · Aug 31, 2026

Jesse Minter still has confidence in K Tyler Loop

Jamison Hensley breaks down the kicking situation for the Ravens.

ESPN · Aug 31, 2026

K Tyler Loop struggles in preseason finale

Jamison Hensley discusses whether Tyler Loop's job is in jeopardy after a lackluster preseason.

ESPN · Aug 29, 2026

Reported by the sources listed — not independently verified.

Head-to-head stats

Metric	Chase McLaughlin	Tyler Loop
Projected points	8.48.48.4	8.58.58.5
Consensus rank	K14	K12
Projected FG attempts	2.0	2.0
Red-zone stalls / game	1.4(2025)	1.9(2025)
Implied total · spread	23.5+3.5	26.5-3.5
Field-goal %	84.2%(2025)	88.2%(2025)
Depth chart	K1	K1
Start/Sit record	0–0+1 toss-up	—