Let’s have a quick Green Bay Packers refresher.
Last year during training camp, the biggest competition — by far — was at kicker. And let’s be honest… it went terribly.
So, the Packers ended the 2024 preseason with Anders Carlson, Greg Joseph, and Alex Hale all battling it out. None of them are on the 2025 training camp roster — and for good reason.
According to Andy Herman of the Pack-A-Day Podcast, here were the final camp stats:
- Anders Carlson: 62/76 (81.6%)
- Greg Joseph: 60/76 (78.9%)
- Alex Hale: 14/21 (66.7%)
Every time one of them lined up to kick, I held my breath. There was no confidence the ball would sail through the uprights. Honestly, it got to the point where I could barely even watch.
Packers Brayden Narveson Experiment
When Carlson was finally cut, and Joseph followed, I thought our long national nightmare was over.
Enter Brayden Narveson. Big leg. Big hopes.
But I wasn’t sold. The scars were still fresh.
Turns out, my doubts were warranted.
Narveson appeared in six games, attempted 17 kicks, and made just 12 — a field goal percentage of 70.6%, which was worse than Carlson. Even worse, a few of those misses cost us early-season games.
So, of course, it wasn’t working.
Here Comes Brandon McManus
Then came Brandon McManus — a 33-year-old veteran, formerly with the Broncos. And what a difference he made. McManus went 20-of-21 on field goals for a 95.2% success rate. Unreal. The Packers saw the difference. So, they re-signed him. Thank goodness.
Still, I wondered: Will age finally catch up to him?
Enter Packers Training Camp 2025
Teams often bring in an extra leg during camp to ease the starter’s workload. With Alex Hale suffering a serious eye injury, Green Bay signed Matt McNamee from Ireland to help fill that role. Unfortunately, visa issues have delayed his arrival.
So, for the first three days of camp, it’s been all McManus.
And, of course, he’s been perfect.
According to Matt Schneidman of The Athletic, McManus has gone 15-for-15 so far in camp — including nine straight on Friday, which just so happened to be his birthday. Incredible.
So, for the first time in a long time, I don’t feel dread when the field goal unit jogs out. The kicker position is finally settled.
Can I say the same about a few other positions? Not yet. But for now, I’ll take the win.
Thank you, Brandon McManus, for bringing some long-awaited peace to this part of the game.
And as always…
Go Pack Go!
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Damon is a diehard, fully-immersed cheesehead who currently lives in southern Missouri. He teaches at a local high school and has a family YouTube channel about all things Packers. You can follow him on twitter at @packersfamily and on YouTube at The Packers Family.
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