The Green Bay Packers added another new kicker to their roster by signing veteran Brandon McManus. The Brayden Narveson experiment is over, as the Packers released the rookie on Wednesday.
Narveson was wildly inconsistent during his time with Green Bay, missing five field goals in just six games. The Packers previously released both Anders Carlson and Greg Joseph and elected to keep Narveson. With Narveson now out, the Packers look to McManus to help make the kicking position more stable.
Brandon McManus spent his college career at Temple. He went undrafted, signed with Indianapolis and was later released in 2013. He then found himself as a member of the Denver Broncos but was released midway through the season in 2014.
Despite the rocky start to his NFL career, McManus went on to win a Super Bowl with the Broncos in 2015. He remained their starting kicker up until 2022. In 2023 he spent his time as the kicker for the Jaguars.
McManus seems unphased by the pressure and seems to understand what’s at stake. When asked if he needed to prove himself, he stated “Every single day you have to prove yourself. Kicker is such a black and white position.”
With yet another move at kicker, it’s evident that Brian Gutekunst is determined to find the answer, as Green Bay has not had a consistent kicker since Mason Crosby. Gutekunst acknowledged the importance of the kicker situation stating “If we had an opportunity to get a veteran kicker who’d been through some of these fires and some of this pressure that our team is going to go through over the next few weeks, I thought it was important that we acquire one. And really Brandon was the only one that was out there.”
Why was a veteran kicker with such a strong resume still on the market? McManus was recently under investigation by the NFL due to a civil lawsuit he was dealing with. The NFL determined there was insufficient evidence to discipline him, so he now finds himself with a fresh start in Green Bay.
“I’m happy that it’s in the past now. I was hoping and working hard for another opportunity. I’m extremely grateful for the Green Bay Packers for giving me that next chance to come back out here and play the game I love,” said McManus. He also added that the lawsuit has been “resolved.”
Brian Gutekunst seemed comfortable with the NFL’s investigation stating, “I think the league did a really thorough investigation and we leaned on that as we went through it.”
McManus has made 81.4% of his field goals in his career. Rich Bisaccia, the Packers Special Teams Coordinator, was especially impressed with McManus’ stats from field goals 50 yards and in as he has made 208 out of his 229 attempts. That means McManus has made 90.8% of field goals 50 yards and in.
It seems Head Coach Matt LaFleur is more than ready for an answer at kicker. “This is the National Football League. You expect whoever you send out there to go out there and make the kicks.”
The Green Bay Packers take on the Houston Texans Sunday. With yet another new face at kicker, the Packers will likely discover if they’ve found the answer in Brandon McManus this weekend.
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