The Green Bay Packers have faced significant challenges with their kicker position recently. After the 2022 NFL season, they chose to part ways with Mason Crosby, the franchise’s all-time leading scorer. They drafted Anders Carlson in the sixth round of the 2023 NFL Draft to fill the vacancy.
The decision to replace Crosby with Carlson, who was not highly regarded before the draft, raised eyebrows, especially given that no competition was brought in for Carlson during last year’s training camp.
During his sole season with the Packers, Carlson made 81.8% of his field goals and only 87.2% of his extra point attempts, which was considered subpar. His performance was marked by inconsistency; despite a perfect start to the season, he ended up having one of the poorest kicking seasons in recent Green Bay history. While Crosby had a few seasons with field goal accuracy below 80%, he was generally reliable with extra points.
Former Green Bay Packers Kicker Greg Joseph Signed with the Detroit Lions to boost team spirit
The Detroit Lions just signed my kicker Greg Joseph to their practice squad. 7-year vet was last with Green Bay and spent three prior seasons with the Minnesota Vikings.
— Brett Tessler (@TesslerSports) September 10, 2024
Carlson missed more kicks than any other kicker in the NFL last season, including misses in 10 of 12 games, which encompassed both of Green Bay’s playoff games. In their second playoff game against the San Francisco 49ers, they lost by three points, with Carlson missing a critical field goal.
To address the issue, the Packers brought in veteran Greg Joseph, who had spent the last three seasons with the Minnesota Vikings, to compete with Carlson in training camp. The competition was intense, with both kickers showing improvement during the offseason. However, Carlson began to falter, and Joseph gained the upper hand, only to struggle in the final stages of camp, making the competition tight again.
Carlson missed a straightforward field goal in the final preseason game and was released when the 53-man roster was finalized. Joseph was retained briefly but was cut the next day when the Packers claimed Brayden Narveson off waivers from the Tennessee Titans, releasing Joseph in the process.
Joseph, however, quickly found a new opportunity. His agent recently announced that he has signed with the Detroit Lions to join their practice squad. With a career field goal accuracy of 82.6% and an extra point success rate of 90.1%, Joseph also has previous experience with the Cleveland Browns, Tennessee Titans, and practice squads of the Carolina Panthers, Miami Dolphins, and Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
