Brandon Aubrey’s looming extension sparks question: How much is elite kicker really worth?

FRISCO — Brandon Aubrey’s kicks have become a spectacle. They’ve become a sight that’s sparked chants from Cowboys fans and stardom not often seen for a NFL kicker. So much so that Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott made a suggestion after Aubrey’s latest feat.
“We might need some music,” Prescott said. “His own special music to play.”
Aubrey has a choice already. It would be the same song he listens to in pregame. It’s the same song he listened to when he stepped on an NFL field for the first time — a seemingly improbable event for a former Major League Soccer draft pick and software engineer.
The choice: “White Horse,” by Chris Stapleton. With its wild west undertones, it’s slow enough to calm him, yet powerful enough to get his heart racing the appropriate amount, he said.
It’s a good choice. The song even, fittingly, mentions cowboys multiple times. But soon, some other songs may be more appropriate. How about AC/DC’s “Moneytalks,” or Abba’s, “Money, Money, Money,” or any of the hundreds of songs that talk about getting paid? Because, in case the point isn’t obvious, Aubrey has put himself in that situation.
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Aubrey, a restricted free agent after this season, believes he’s the best kicker in the NFL. Since he’s been in the league, he’s backed that claim with evidence. He was named NFC Special Teams Player of the Week for the fourth time on Wednesday, marking the most times a Cowboys player has won that award. He earned it after making all four of his field goals in Sunday’s 40-37 overtime win over the New York Giants. That included his 64-yard field goal to send the game into overtime and the 46-yard walk-off. In doing so, he became the first kicker in NFL history to ever have that type of combination — two kicks with no time left at the end of regulation and the end of the game. He was simultaneously a Cowboys savior and a Giants killer.
“He won that game,” Cowboys owner Jerry Jones said after the game.
“He’s a terrific weapon.”
Jones was asked this week on 105.3 The Fan (KRLD-FM) about whether Aubrey could be next in line for an extension. Jones played coy, even if it was easily readable. He said they “probably” have had conversations with Aubrey’s representatives about a potential extension. He insinuated something could be happening soon.
That sparks two questions: What would that contract look like? And is it worth it to pay a kicker big money?
There are reasons for trepidation when it comes to investing in kickers. Atlanta Falcons kicker Younghoe Koo is one example. Koo, like Aubrey, has a big leg and a unique path to the NFL. He, too, had to go to a spring league and prove himself in order to get a legitimate NFL shot. He landed with the Atlanta Falcons in 2019 and quickly solidified his spot on the team. He went 87-of-94 — roughly 92.5% — from 2019 to 2021. After that, the Falcons awarded him with a five-year deal that paid him an annual average value of $4.85 million per year.
Since the deal, Koo has struggled. He’s made roughly 82% of his kicks. He missed a pivotal kick in the season opener, prompting the Falcons to bench him this past week.
There are other examples of potential drop off. Here’s a look at the five highest-paid kickers, in terms of annual value, in the NFL before and after their latest extension.
Kicking, people will tell you, can be fickle. It’s a mental game, where ruts can occur and ultimately affect kickers. Things can change quickly, too. The Cowboys signed veteran Mike Vanderjagt to a three-year deal prior to the 2006 season. They hoped the two-time Pro Bowler would be around for a while. Instead, he missed five field goals and was cut before December of that season. He never kicked in the NFL again.
There’s belief around the Cowboys’ headquarters that Aubrey could be different.
He may be 30, but he’s still young for a kicker. There’s not a lot of tread on the tires for a kicker who has made 82 of 91 career kicks. And even if there was, when would it really start to be a detriment?
“Obviously he’s got a crazy leg,” said Cowboys long snapper Trent Sieg, “and he’s hit a ton of 60 yarders that are good from 70, or so. If he loses three yards, so what? He’s hitting from 68 then.”
Aubrey’s leg power is unique. The mental part of his game might be, as well.
Aubrey’s teammates and coaches have painted him as an unflappable person — someone immune to potentially dejecting factors. Aubrey missed the first kick he ever attempted in the NFL. It was a point-after-attempt in the 2023 season opener against the Giants. Former Cowboys special teams coach John Fassel said Aubrey didn’t have any “ruffled feathers.”
Then there was the time during a halftime warmup when Sieg, punter Bryan Anger and Aubrey went out to practice kicks as they always do. Aubrey took one kick and missed. Sieg asked him if he wanted to kick again. Aubrey responded with what Sieg deemed one of the weirdest things he’s seen from a kicker: “No,” Sieg recalled Aubrey saying, “I’m good.”
Aubrey, Sieg said, wasn’t focused on the result in that moment. He was focused on the process. One of the essential components is getting the right feel with his path, swing, and ultimately his impact on the ball. A focus on the process is something Aubrey — a former engineer, mind you — learned from former NFL kicker John Carney. It’s from there that Aubrey gains his confidence.
“He goes out there and expects to make every kick,” Cowboys head coach Brian Schottenheimer said. “And he should, because he’s that talented.”
It’s from there, and from his production, where the Cowboys will likely gain confidence to offer Aubrey an extension. It should make him the highest-paid kicker in the NFL.
Based on conversations with people around the league, it would be reasonable to expect Aubrey to command around $7 million per year. It would be a raise from Butker, who signed for $6.4 million per year before the start of last season.
The Cowboys have the highest-paid guard in the NFL. They have the highest-paid player in the NFL. Soon, they could have the highest-paid kicker in the NFL, too.
As AC/DC once sang, money talks.
Twitter: @JoeJHoyt