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

The Buffalo Bills released Stephen Hauschka, their starting kicker since 2017, the team announced Thursday, nearly one year to the day after giving him a two-year contract extension.

Buffalo selected Georgia Southern kicker Tyler Bass in the sixth round of the 2020 NFL draft, igniting a position battle that took roughly 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 in Buffalo. He made 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 accuracy from 50-plus yards ranks last out 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.