Those who snub Father Time like to say that 50 is the new 30. A different Father — Benedictine priest Maximilian Maxwell— sprinkled holy water in the end zone before his beloved Pittsburgh Steelers took on the Baltimore Ravens on Sunday with the AFC North title on the line.

Fifty is the new 30 also applies to field goals. More than 70% of kicks over 50 yards are successful these days, a dramatic increase in accuracy from only five years ago. Excuse Maxwell for thinking divine intervention might be necessary should a last-second missed kick determine the outcome.

A 44-yarder is a chip shot for most NFL kickers, including Ravens rookie Tyler Loop, who had made 90% of his attempts — including eight of eight from 40-49 yards — when the ball was snapped with three seconds to play and Baltimore trailing 26-24.

Two words coined when Scott Norwood missed a 47-yard attempt that cost the Buffalo Bills Super Bowl XXV in 1991 once again were screamed on a television broadcast: “Wide right!”

Another memorable miss came from a kicker regarded as the best in the NFL 20-some years ago. Brash, outspoken Mike Vanderjagt of the Indianapolis Colts led the league in scoring in 1999 and four years later became the first kicker in history to make every kick in a full season: 83 of 83 on field goals and extra points.

Yet he botched a boot with 21 seconds to play during a playoff game in 2006, enabling the Steelers to upset the Colts. Pittsburgh went on to win the Super Bowl and Vanderjagt was replaced by Adam Vinatieri. He never regained his form.

Here’s hoping Loop rebounds better than Vanderjagt or Norwood, who was released a year after the historic miss and never played again. Loop was All Pac-12 in 2023 at Arizona, where he holds records for longest field goal (62 yards) and success rate (83.75%). He was the Wildcats’ GOAT before becoming the Ravens’ goat.

Loop, 24, didn’t duck the media, leaving the impression that he won’t let this failure define him.

“Just want to say I’m super grateful to Baltimore, the organization and the city, just how they embraced me this year has been incredible,” he said. “Just for it to end like that, sucks, and I want to do better.

“Unfortunately, the nature of the job is you have makes, and those are awesome, and unfortunately, you have misses, and for that to happen tonight sucks.”

The specialized nature of kickers can place them on the periphery of team bonding, but Loop’s teammates and coaches were supportive in the aftermath of the season-ending loss.

Coach John Harbaugh walked alongside Loop from the field to the locker room, with his arm around his back comforting him. Quarterback Lamar Jackson downplayed the impact, telling reporters, “He’s a rookie, you know. It’s all good. Just leave it in the past.”

Only time will tell whether Loop can do just that.

Longtime NFL head coach and Super Bowl champion Pete Carroll was fired after just one season with the Las Vegas Raiders, the team announced Monday. 

The 74-year-old coach said after Sunday’s win over the Kansas City Chiefs that he “of course” would want to return for another season. But owner Mark Davis had different plans for the former Seattle Seahawks coach. 

“The Las Vegas Raiders have relieved Pete Carroll of his duties as head coach. We appreciate and wish him and his family all the best,” Davis said in a statement provided by the team. 

“Moving forward, General Manager John Spytek will lead all football operations in close collaboration with Tom Brady, including the search for the club’s next head coach. Together, they will guide football decisions with a shared focus on leadership, culture, and alignment with the organization’s long-term vision and goals.”

The move marks a period of instability for the Raiders organization as they begin their third straight year on the hunt for a new coach. 

Carroll, who won the Super Bowl with then-Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson in 2014, was brought in with the hopes of bringing that same playoff magic to the Raiders after the team dismissed Antonio Pierce. 

BROWNS FIRE HEAD COACH KEVIN STEFANSKI AFTER SIX SEASONS

Pierce was also fired after just one season – he served as the interim head coach in 2023, after Josh McDaniels was fired midseason. 

But Carroll wasn’t able to live up to those expectations.  

The Raiders went on a 10-game losing streak, Geno Smith finished with a league-high 17 interceptions and for the second season, the Raiders finished at the bottom of the AFC West with a 3-14 record.

Carroll was animated after the team closed out the season with a 14-12 win over the Chiefs, but was immediately met in his postgame presser with questions about wanting to come back the following season and reports of retirement. 

“Nobody’s talking to me about that,” he dismissed at the time.

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 The Associated Press contributed to this report. 

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It wasn’t an accident that the Lakers’ first play went to Deandre Ayton. Or that the star big man got the first shot of the third. Or that teammates fed him for back-to-back dunks to help spark a run of five consecutive scoring possessions early in the second half.

After Ayton finished last Friday’s win on the bench, the 7-foot center bounced back with 15 points and eight rebounds against the Grizzlies on Sunday as the Lakers made a point to involve the big man early.

Ayton scored just four points with six rebounds during Friday’s win and watched a tight fourth quarter from the bench because, as coach JJ Redick said, backup Jaxson Hayes “was playing better.” Redick said Saturday that Ayton was “frustrated” he wasn’t getting the ball more in recent games, and his disillusionment showed up on the court.

“It’s a tale as old as time for a big guy,” Redick said after Sunday’s game. “That’s the reality of being a big: someone has to pass you the ball. You’re not initiating the offense.”

Redick said the team identified moments where teammates could have been better at finding the former No. 1 overall pick. There were also other times when Ayton could have been more active on his own. Redick said he mostly wanted to see Ayton being active, engaged and assertive in the game.

Ayton responded by converting six of his eight shots Sunday and helping the team lock down on defense in the fourth. The Lakers clawed back from an 11-point deficit late in the third and held the Grizzlies (15-19) to just 16 points in the first 10 minutes of the fourth quarter. Ayton had two blocks in the fourth quarter.

“We’re winning the right way,” Ayton said. “Bigs can’t feed themselves and I just try my best to do what I can to bring effort. And I trust my playmakers out there to find me.”

The Lakers had 30 assists on 38 made shots, their highest percentage of assisted field goals of the season.