The Green Bay Packers have made a significant change to their special teams unit, releasing veteran kicker Brandon McManus just two weeks after drafting a potential successor, according to a person familiar with the situation who spoke to The Associated Press on Friday.
This move comes as no surprise to those following the Packers' offseason strategy. Green Bay was the only NFL team to select a kicker in last month's draft, trading away two seventh-round picks to secure Florida's Trey Smack with the 216th overall selection. The writing was on the wall for McManus, who now finds himself searching for a new team.
McManus, 34, had a solid but inconsistent two-year run in Green Bay. During the regular season with the Packers, he connected on 44 of 51 field-goal attempts, including an impressive 6 of 8 from 50 yards or beyond. However, his playoff performance left much to be desired—he missed two field goals and an extra-point attempt in Green Bay's heartbreaking 31-27 wild-card loss to the Chicago Bears.
The veteran kicker's career has been a model of longevity, with a 12-year resume that includes stops with the Denver Broncos (2014-22) and Jacksonville Jaguars (2023) before joining the Packers in October 2024. He boasts an 82% career field-goal percentage, a testament to his reliability over the years.
McManus was originally brought in to replace struggling rookie Brayden Narveson, and his tenure in Green Bay couldn't have started more dramatically. He delivered game-winning field goals as time expired in his first two games with the team—a 45-yarder to beat the Houston Texans 24-22 and a 24-yarder to top the Jacksonville Jaguars 30-27. That hot start earned him a three-year, $15.3 million contract after the 2024 season, during which he went 20 of 21 on field goals and a perfect 30 of 30 on extra points.
But consistency proved elusive in 2025. McManus went 24 of 30 on field goals, including just 6 of 12 from 40 yards or beyond, and missed two games due to injury after starting the season 7 of 9 through the first four contests. The Packers now turn to rookie Trey Smack and existing roster kicker Lucas Havrisik to handle kicking duties moving forward.