Tyler Bass has come a long, long way.
Summed up, Bass went from a small-school walk-on athlete to the kicker that makes the fourth-most per season in the NFL. That’s what Bass is following his four-year, $21 million extension he signed with the Buffalo Bills.
Following the news, Bass wanted to assure Buffalo of one thing: His walk-on mindset isn’t going anywhere.
“For me, I was a walk-on in college, and that mentality of what I did to earn that, I’m never going to forget that. I’m still going to grind,” he said via video conference. “I think I’m going to grind even more now. It’s just a little bit relieving, you know, you have a little bit of security. But at the end of the day, you still got to work. That’s what got me here, that’s what I’m going keep doing as best I can.”
And that’s likely the exact reason the Bills felt comfortable handing that new deal to him.
Buffalo’s front office has long touted Bass and his journey. He attended Georgia Southern, not exactly a NFL powerhouse school, and was a sixth-round pick of the Bills in 2020.
Last offseason, special teams coordinator Matt Smiley explained how that work Bass has done gives Buffalo’s coaching staff all the confidence in the world in him.
“He came in from a smaller school, was a drafted specialist. He has worked his butt off to keep things in perspective, keep with a routine, keep stacking good days. That’s the most rewarding thing of coaching,” Smiley said.
Perhaps inadvertently, Bass did pull the curtain back a on the way he’s wired: He just landed a large extension for a kicker. Does he want to repay the Bills for the contract?
Well, yes, but that’s not what he referenced.
Bass is still moving forward thinking back to the team that drafted a small-school kid.
“They drafted me and they were a team to take a chance on the kid from Georgia Southern. For me, that meant a lot to me.” he said. “Not only that, I love the culture here. I love the people here. The relationships I have here I’m gonna have for the rest of my life. I know it’s challenging, but I’m excited for the challenge.”
The 26-year-old has made 83 of his 97 career field goal attempts (85.6%) and 156 of his 160 point-after attempts in his career.
In 2022, Bass was 27 of 31 on field goals and made game-winning kicks against the Baltimore Ravens and Detroit Lions.
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