CHARLOTTE, N.C. — One Carolina Panthers player stands above all others in the NFL record books.
Kicker Eddy Piñeiro is now the NFL's most accurate kicker. His 89.38% accuracy on field goals is the best among kickers with a minimum of 100 attempts.
Piñeiro's climb to the top of the leaderboard was made possible by recent struggles for the Baltimore Ravens' usually reliable Justin Tucker. During the Ravens' 18-16 loss to Pittsburgh on Sunday, Tucker missed two field goals. Tucker is 16 of 22 on the season, pushing him down from an all-time leading 90.18% to begin the year to second place behind Piñeiro.
Tucker's career accuracy is now 89.15%, slightly behind Piñeiro. It should be noted that Tucker has attempted 460 field goals in his 13-year career compared to Piñeiro's 113 attempts in his five seasons.
The Panthers signed Piñeiro ahead of the 2022 season after an injury to Zane Gonzalez. He played his first two seasons with the Chicago Bears and New York Jets.
Piñeiro missed just two of his 35 field goal attempts in 2022 and easily became one of Carolina's most reliable players.
In 2023, Piñeiro once again stepped up and connected on 25 of 29 field goals. He is 12 of 13 through the first 10 games of 2024.
Piñeiro is not just racking up NFL record-setting numbers, he has come up big in clutch moments for the Panthers.
2024 - Week 10
Piñeiro's heroics were on display in the Panthers' most recent game. He hit a 53-yard field goal in the second quarter to give Carolina a 10-0 lead over the New York Giants in Germany.
New York pushed back and forced overtime with a late field goal by former Panthers kicker Graham Gano.
The Panthers gained possession early on in overtime after a Giants player fumbled deep in New York territory. Piñeiro was called on moments later for the game-winning kick. His 36-yard field goal was good and gave the Panthers their second win in a row.
2023 - Weeks 8 and 15
Piñeiro scored the game-winning points in both of the Panthers' wins in 2023. The Panthers faced the Houston Texans with a dreadful 0-6 record. Piñeiro missed a game-tying extra point in the second quarter but converted his next attempts.
He connected on a 46-yard and 37-yard field goal in the third quarter to give the Panthers a 12-7 lead. Houston scored a go-ahead touchdown later in the quarter as the Panthers continued to struggle offensively. On the game's final drive, quarterback Bryce Young led the Panthers on a 15-play, 86-yard drive that ended with Piñeiro's game-winning 23-yard field goal. It was Carolina's first win of the season.
Another 23-yard field goal resulted in the Panthers' second win of 2023. Piñeiro scored all nine points in Carolina's 9-7 win over the Atlanta Falcons in Week 15. Inclement weather slowed down both offenses and made scoring a premium.
Trailing 7-6 in the fourth quarter, the Carolina defense made a crucial interception in the endzone that gave the Panthers a shot to take the lead.
Young pushed the Panthers 90 yards on the game-winning drive. Piñeiro delivered the 23-yard field goal for the win.
2022 - Week 18
The Panthers closed out the 2022 season with a 10-7 win over the New Orleans Saints. As the score would indicate, both offenses were extremely inept. Panthers quarterback Sam Darnold finished the game with just 45 yards passing, almost half of which came on one play on the game's final drive.
With the score tied 7-7, Carolina moved into position for a game-winning kick in the final minute of regulation.
Piñeiro was called on for his first attempt on the final play of the season. He drilled the 42-yard kick to give the Panthers their seventh win.