The New Orleans Saints decided to move on from Daniel Carlson.
The Saints had a bye in Week 8, and coming out of the bye, they cut the veteran kicker who had held that role for them for this entire regular season so far.
Of course, kicker is one of those positions that requires an equal and opposite reaction when a player is cut. A team always needs to have a kicker on the roster.
Carlson hadn’t been quite good enough for New Orleans, and his long-range kicking wasn’t up to par with the way the NFL’s kickers have trended in recent years — all four of Carlson’s misses this season were from 50-plus, and he also had missed a couple of extra points.
There was immediate curiosity about what the Saints might do at kicker, but in reality, it was pretty clear from the moment Carlson was cut.
Saints Make Kicker Decision
Saints head coach Kellen Moore told reporters earlier this week that Charlie Smyth will kick for the Saints in Week 9 against the Cleveland Browns.
There’s no guarantee the youngster Smyth gets the job the rest of the way, but with the Saints 2-5, it might behoove them to give Smyth a long enough runway to prove what he can do.
Smyth was already on the Saints’ practice squad in their International Pathway Program spot. That meant New Orleans didn’t have to sign someone new to kick this week. They’ll just have to elevate Smyth from the practice squad — which they can do for three gamedays before needing to potentially sign him to the active roster.
Who is Charlie Smyth?
Smyth is a kicker in his second year in the NFL.
The strong-legged kicker is originally from Northern Ireland, and he didn’t have a whole lot of kicking experience before making his NFL debut with the Saints during the 2025 season.
Smyth ended up playing in six games with the Saints in 2025, and he went 12-for-16 on field goals. That included 4-for-6 from 50-yards or more, and he made a kick from 57 yards as part of his long-distance kicking.
The youngster was also 13-for-13 on extra points, and he had a 48.5 touchback percentage when he was kicking off.
Despite that, the Saints signed Carlson late in the preseason and went with the former first-team All-Pro instead of Smyth.
At the time it was a bit curious only because the Saints had waited so long to find a Smyth replacement.
But there are plenty who believe in Smyth’s ability and raw talent. He seems like the type of player who simply needs a change to prove himself, and to improve on the job.
The Saints saw that Smyth was quite capable at the end of last season, and they’re giving him another chance now. It’ll be up to Smyth to be so good now that the Saints can’t turn away from him again.
Saints Make Kicker Decision After Daniel Carlson Release