As Geno Smith went out of bounds at the Tampa Bay 45-yard line with seven seconds left on Sunday, the Jets were staring at a potential 63-yard field goal.
“I was ready to hit it from there,” kicker Nick Folk said. “I was already out on the field in case I had to.”
But Buccaneers linebacker Lavonte David helped out, committing a 15-yard late hit penalty on Smith, which moved a potential 63-yard field goal attempt to a more reasonable 48-yarder.
Folk drilled it, lifting the Jets to a thrilling 18-17 season-opening win at MetLife Stadium.
“Go ahead and write it: ‘Folk Hero,’ ” Rex Ryan said.
Fair enough. Folk was flawless Sunday, converting all three of his field goal attempts as he also hit from 43 yards in the second quarter (the Jets’ first offensive points of the season) and from 30 yards with 5:09 left in the fourth to put the Jets up 15-14.
“At first, I didn’t want to look,” wideout Stephen Hill said of Folk’s final kick. “But instead I did.”
Folk did not have job security entering training camp, as the Jets brought in both Billy Cundiff and Dan Carpenter to compete with him. Folk won the derby and has made 10 of his last 11 field goals going back to last season.
This was Folk’s second season-opening, game-winning field goal for the Jets in three years. In the 2011 season opener against the Cowboys at MetLife, he blasted a 50-yarder with 32 seconds left to propel the Jets to a 26-24 triumph.
During Sunday’s game, Folk told the Jets his max distance was probably from 52 or 53 yards. His career-long field goal is a 56-yarder back in 2010, although that was at Mile High in Denver.
Could he have hit from 63 if David hadn’t committed his penalty? Probably not, although Folk pointed out it was possible the Jets could have shaved a few more yards off the distance with one more play before he attempted a final kick.
Either way, Folk delivered.
“I hit it pretty well,” he said. “It feels great, especially in Week 1, to get a big win.”