Getty Packers head coach Matt LaFleur.
The Green Bay Packers made a rare and curious call during the 2023 NFL draft, one that may come back to haunt them as early as this season.
General manager Brian Gutekunst selected kicker Anders Carlson in the sixth round (No. 207 overall), signing him to a four-year rookie deal worth just shy of $4 million total. The position is notorious for its inherent pressure and the spotlight it shines on those who play it, thereby making it a volatile one to draft due to all of the unseen mental factors that determine success or failure.
Kristopher Knox of Bleacher Report noted that phenomenon on Monday, August 12, upon naming Carlson among the league’s most likely cut candidates.
“Teams typically aren’t thrilled to use draft capital on specialists, so when a kicker gets drafted, it’s noteworthy,” Knox wrote. “However, the Auburn product had his fair share of ups and downs as a rookie. He made just 27-of-33 field goal attempts and 34-of-39 point after tries during the regular season before missing two more kicks in the postseason. Now, the Packers are making the 26-year-old win the job all over again.”
Packers Have Signed Greg Joseph, Alex Hale to Compete for Job of Starting Kicker
GettyKicker Anders Carlson of the Green Bay Packers.
Carlson is now feeling the heat in practice during his second offseason as much as he did in games during his rookie campaign, as Green Bay has brought in not just one, but two kickers to challenge him.
Greg Joseph, who spent the last three years as the placekicker for the Minnesota Vikings, has been with the Packers since late March. He held a slight edge over Carlson with regards to in-practice field goal percentage as of August 3, per unofficial math conducted and shared to X by Andy Herman of Packers Report.
Since then, Green Bay added Alex Hale to the mix, as reported by Bill Huber of Sports Illustrated. Hale went undrafted in 2024 after a five-year collegiate career with Oklahoma State. The native Australian connected on 27-of-34 field goal tries as well as 36-of-38 extra points during his senior campaign, per Football Reference.
Anders Carlson Faces Potential Stigma as Packers’ Draft Pick
GettyKicker Anders Carlson of the Green Bay Packers.
Carlson isn’t only running the risk of losing his starting spot this offseason — which would equate to losing his paycheck altogether, as NFL teams rarely roster two kickers simultaneously. He is now also at risk of becoming the poster child for the stigma around drafting specialists at all.
The Cleveland Browns offered the league its latest cautionary tale, spending a fourth-round selection in 2022 on Cade York out of LSU. The franchise waived York in late August 2023 after he produced a strikingly similar rookie season to that of Carlson (24-of-32 field goals and 2 missed extra points), then found himself out-dueled by Dustin Hopkins in the preseason.
York had brief stints with the Tennessee Titans and New York Giants subsequently, though has yet to attempt another meaningful kick since losing his job in Cleveland. York is now the Browns’ second-string kicker behind Hopkins, as he tries to fight his way back into the league.
Carlson has an NFL pedigree, as his brother Daniel Carlson has been the starting kicker for the Las Vegas Raiders for the majority of the past six seasons and has two All-Pro selections on his resumé. That said, the younger Carlson has just a few weeks to prove he can be as talented as his older sibling before the Packers force him to look for work outside of Green Bay.
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Packers Predicted to Part Ways With Draft Pick Who Raised Eyebrows in 2023