Just how valuable is an elite kicker to a team's Super Bowl chances? Take the Seahawks' Jason Myers as an example, and get ready for the Cowboys see that through with Brandon Aubrey. ... Well, at least the kicker part.
It's hard to ask fans about the value of All-Pro kicker Brandon Aubrey to the Dallas Cowboys and not be met with a lengthy description that depicts him as one of the franchise's most significant pieces.
For the most part, those fans are correct.
Soon it'll be time that the Cowboys finally reflect that value in his salary.
Just how much does a generational kicking talent cost? It's not a huge slice of the team's salary cap, but even a $7 million ticket - which would be the richest for a kicker in NFL history - feels like a bargain for just how good Aubrey is.
And if this weekend was any indication for how truly valuable an elite kicker is to championship aspirations, take the Seattle Seahawks' Jason Myers as an example.
Yeah, Myers was the only sign of offense for the first half of Super Bowl LX, which ultimately opened up in the second half for a 29-13 Seahawks win over the New England Patriots, but the kicker's entire 2025 season sums up how Seattle was able to be as complete as it was en route to its second title.
After all, his department makes up a third of the cliché "three phases of the game" that coaches hound so relentlessly. It was as good as they come.
Joining Myers on special teams is punter Michael Dickson, who like Aubrey in place kicking, has a spot in the conversation for the best at his position in the NFL.
Myers just completed his 11th year in the league, and seventh servicing the Seahawks. He's a staple veteran "name", but has seemed to get overshadowed at times by new-age bombers like Aubrey, Jacksonville's Cam Little and Minnesota's Will Reichard.
These guys have taken advantage of the new kicker-specific footballs that allow air travel that the league has never seen, which enabled Little to hit his record-breaking 68-yard field goal in Week 9.
But Myers? He's a model of consistency that rightfully puts him into the debate for the league's most elite. He quietly put together the most prolific point-scoring season in NFL history.
The Seahawks marksman nailed five field goals on Sunday against the Pats, a Super Bowl record. In doing so, he accounted for 17 total points in the game, which put his season total at 206. No player has ever scored that many points in a season, and he's the first to ever surpass 200 in one regular season plus postseason.
So, how does this apply to Aubrey? Well, it's safe to say that the Cowboys star is plenty capable of that type of efficiency, especially considering his in-the-stadium range as the player with the most 60-yarders in league history (6).
Aubrey, the league's Second Team All-Pro kicker this season, finished third in made field goals in 2025, but tied the league-high with 11 makes from 50+. That number could have been even higher, however, if Dallas' disastrous defense didn't put the offense in position to always need seven points rather than three.
Head coach Brian Schottenheimer was also overly-ambitious at times relying on Aubrey's excellence. The former soccer pro missed six kicks from beyond 50, his only field goal misses of the season and the most from that distance of his young career.
Nonetheless, the value is evident.
As Myers and his stellar point-scoring season proved, there hasn't been a drop-off in kicking importance by league perception. If anything, the market is seeing an uptick in it's due respect.
Sources close to the situation expect Aubrey to be placed on a second-round tender this offseason, where he enters as a restricted free agent. This keeps him under team control without neogitating a long-term extension and would gift the Cowboys a second-round draft pick if a team signs him for a larger figure.
The tender puts Aubrey's salary around $6 million and out of record reach. He may also be eligible for a franchise tag worth $6.7 million in 2027.
Regardless of the eventual price, due to this the kicking revolution - perfectly personified by Myers' impact on a Super Bowl title - Brandon Aubrey will get what he deserves.
And even that may not be enough.