The Green Bay Packers have finally found their next reliable kicker. That is, it appears that they have after just one week of having Brandon McManus on their roster. In their most recent victory, a 24-22 thriller against the Houston Texans, McManus drilled a 45-yard field goal as time expired to give the Packers the win. He also made all three of his extra point attempts.
Of course, McManus was signed last week upon the release of undrafted free agent rookie kicker Brayden Narveson. In six games with Green Bay, Narveson made 12 of his 17 field goal attempts (70.6%) and all of his extra points.
His inability to find consistency, though, led Green Bay to turn to the trusty veteran McManus, who was recently “resolved” (his word) the lawsuits brought against him.
Now, Narveson is looking for a new team, and one AFC powerhouse has given him a workout.
Former Green Bay Packers Kicker Brayden Narveson Worked Out for the Buffalo Bills
Tork Mason/USA TODAY NETWORK-Wisconsin
According to Aaron Wilson, a Texans insider who also covers the entire NFL, Narveson was hosted by the Buffalo Bills for a workout on Tuesday:
As one can see from Wilson’s post, the Bills also hosted Tanner Brown, the former Oklahoma State kicker who spent last season on the Los Angeles Rams‘ practice squad after he went undrafted in 2023.
The Bills, like the Packers, are 5-2 on the season. However, whereas Green Bay as finally found (they believe) a consistent kicker, Buffalo has not.
Tyler Bass is back for his fifth season as the Bills kicker, but he is having the worst year of his career thus far. He currently has a 78.6% field goal percentage and 91.7% success rate on his extra points.
Most concerning for Buffalo, Bass has struggled on kicks between 40-49 yards this season, making just two of five his attempts from that range.
Narveson has been slightly better from that distance, making five of nine field goal attempts between 40-49 yards.
Brayden Narveson Could Become the 3rd Former Green Bay Packers Kicker on an NFL Roster
Wm. Glasheen USA TODAY NETWORK-Wisconsin
If the Bills, or any other NFL team, sign Narveson yet this season, he could become the third former Packers kicker (from just this year) to play for a different team in an NFL game.
Following a frustrating training camp, both Anders Carlson and Greg Joseph were released by the Packers in favor of Narveson. Joseph joined the Detroit Lions practice squad before being signed by the New York Giants to fill in for their injured kicker. He currently has a 75% field goal percentage, with all of his misses (three) coming from between 40-49 yards.
Carlson lost the Lions’ practice squad job to Joseph and remained unsigned until late last week. He was picked up by the San Francisco 49ers following injuries to Jake Moody and Matthew Wright. In San Francisco’s 28-18 loss to the Kansas City Chiefs on Sunday, Carlson made his two field goal attempts, including one from 55 yards out.
However, he also missed an extra point, the only one he was allowed to attempt.
