The Green Bay Packers Want to Re-Sign Kicker Brandon McManus, But Will he Be Back?

The Green Bay Packers have several players scheduled to be unrestricted free agents when the new league year starts in March. One player who the Packers definitely want back is veteran kicker Brandon McManus. But will GM Brian Gutekunst be able to re-sign the free agent kicker?

The Packers Want to Re-Sign Kicker Brandon McManus: The Struggle to Find a Kicker

The Packers signed McManus after struggling with their kicking for the first six weeks of the season. After releasing all of their training camp kickers on the final cutdown, the Pack signed Brayden Narveson off waivers from the Tennessee Titans. Unfortunately, Narveson proved to be inconsistent and was ranked near the bottom of the league in accuracy during his brief tenure with the team.

When the Packers signed McManus, they were trying to replace Mason Crosby. The team parted ways with their all-time leading scorer after the 2022 season. They drafted Anders Carlson in 2023, but he also proved to be inconsistent. He led the league in missed kicks. That included a critical miss in the team’s playoff loss to the 49ers. Carlson was one of the kickers the Packers released on the final cut in 2024.

Would McManus be the solution for the Packers long-term kicking problems?

McManus Steps In

McManus made an immediate impact when he joined the Packers. In his first two games with the team, he kicked the game-winning field goal as time expired.

Head coach Matt LaFleur showed his confidence in McManus during the season. By December, LaFleur paid his new kicker a big compliment when he said, “I don’t even really watch it all the time now,” LaFleur said when asked what he does when McManus lines up to kick. “I just kind of move on to the next thing.”

McManus also won over his teammates. “We have a lot of confidence [in McManus],” quarterback Jordan Love said during the season. “Since he’s got here, he’s just proven who he is and what he’s about. He’s made some really big-time kicks for us, and he’s come in and taken over that role and he’s done a great job. To know you’ve got a guy who you’ve just got to get into his range and he’s going to put it through the uprights, it’s a good feeling to have.”

That’s a far cry from the quote he has about Carlson’s kicking a year prior where he said he prayed when he lined up for a kick. LaFleur later claimed that he was joking, but the difference in tone in the comments clearly indicates the level of confidence he had in each of these kickers.

For the season, McManus was extremely consistent. He was perfect on 30 extra point attempts and connected successfully on 20-of-21 field goals. His only miss came on a windy, rainy day at Lambeau.

The Packers Want to Re-Sign Kicker Brandon McManus: Can They Re-Sign Him?

The big question now is will the Packers be able to re-sign McManus? Gutekunst stated the desire is certainly there.

“Yeah, we’d love to,” Gutekunst said when asked about bringing back McManus. “We’re working towards that end. We’ll see where that goes.”

After Crosby left, the Packers quickly learned how valuable a reliable kicker can be. It’s one of those positions that teams tend not to fully appreciate until they don’t have one.

McManus has 11 years of NFL experience and has proven himself to be reliable in Denver, Jacksonville, and Green Bay. He had no difficulty kicking in the cold and windy conditions at Lambeau Field in November, December, and January. In fact, he kicked several field goals from 50-yards-or-later in the season in clutch situations.

Despite having more than a decade in the league, McManus should still have a few more years left to kick at a high level. He will turn 34 in July, which is not that old for a kicker, especially if he takes care of himself.

While kicker usually don’t get a lot of attention, this may be one of the more overlooked important decisions Gutekunst has this offseason. When NFL teams find a reliable kicker, they should be reluctant to part with them. Now the Packers need to find a way to re-sign McManus.