Aside from guys like DeMarco Murray and possibly Dez Bryant, there isn't a player on the Dallas Cowboys who is more dominant at his position in the NFL than kicker Dan Bailey.
Kickers don't get a ton of love from fans, but the Cowboys have the best in the league, and the numbers prove it. Over his career, Bailey is now the most accurate kicker in NFL history, passing former Cowboys flameout Mike Vanderjagt, who had all of his success before coming to Dallas with the Indianapolis Colts.
Bailey has been as automatic as they come, seemingly drilling every field goal — no matter the distance — right down the middle. But lately, things haven't been so incredibly easy for the former Oklahoma State kicker.
On Sunday, Bailey missed his first attempt from what was basically a chip shot for Bailey before coming back later in the game to hit a key 51-yarder. In Week 17, Bailey was 3-for-3 against the Redskins, but his longest attempt was from 36 yards. Before that? He missed his only attempt against the Colts.
Prior to the Cowboys' Week 11 bye, Bailey went 1-for-2 in each of the previous two games against the Cardinals and Jaguars. Missed field goals happen, but not when you're Bailey. Prior to that Week 9 game against the Cardinals, Bailey was 15-for-16 and didn't have his first miss of the season until Week 5. Before that, his previous miss came in Week 4 of 2013.
Again, this is nothing to stress too much about, but Bailey hasn't been his normally automatic, robotic self as of late, and it's something to watch moving forward, especially on Sunday in Green Bay with temperatures struggling to get into double-digits.
