Stephen Hauschka cut by Bills as rookie Tyler Bass wins kicker job

The Buffalo Bills release Stephen Hauschka, their starting kicker since 2017, announced the team Thursday, almost one year until the day after he gave a two-year contract extension.

Buffalo selected Georgia Southern kicker Tyler Bass in the sixth round of the NFL Draft 2020, and unleashed a position battle that took about a month to resolve.

Hauschka won a Super Bowl with the Seattle Seahawks in 2013 and signed with the Bills four years later, making 87.9% of his kicks in his first season at Buffalo. He scored 78.6% of his field goals in each of his past two seasons, however, including just 41.7% of his attempts for 50 yards or longer.

His 50-plus accuracy ranks the last of 11 kickers to attempt at least 10 field goals from that distance over the past two seasons.

The Bills gave Hauschka a two-year extension on August 28, 2019. He spent six seasons as Seattle’s starting kicker after stints in Baltimore and Denver.