Just weeks after the 2026 NFL Draft, the Green Bay Packers made a move many fans longed for following the season’s end. The Packers released kicker Brandon McManus on Friday, clearing some cap space but, more importantly, paving the way for sixth-round rookie Trey Smack to earn the placekicking job.
Brian Gutekunst and Matt LaFleur talked about the importance of competition, and new special teams coordinator Cam Achord has no qualms about splitting opportunities for multiple kickers. But McManus won’t be part of that competition, despite the Packers paying him a $1 million roster bonus in March.
The most optimistic expectation was that Smack would reward the team’s faith in him by winning the job by the end of training camp. Why release McManus now, rather than immediately following the season or letting him compete for the job?
McManus quickly went from a breath of fresh air to a liability in just a season and a half of play.
Following the woes of rookie Brayden Narveson and the struggles of 2023 draft pick Anders Carlson, Gutekunst decided to bring in an experienced veteran rather than continue a parade of rookie struggles. McManus, a former Super Bowl-winning kicker, made an immediate impact with two game-winning field goals in a row and continued offering a reliable presence.
After 2024’s kicking competition, going into the 2025 season with a clear, stress-free answer at kicker was refreshing.
It wouldn’t last.
By midseason, McManus suffered a quad injury, which would cause him to miss time, paving the way for Lucas Havrisik to join the roster and, thus, the 2026 kicking competition (and make the longest field goal in franchise history).
Between early struggles, poor field goal protection plans, and McManus’ lingering injury, he finished with an 80% field goal percentage, fifth-worst in the league. While McManus ended the regular season on a relatively high note, his Green Bay legacy came crashing down against the Chicago Bears in the Wild Card round.
With two missed field goals and a missed extra point, a classic touchdown’s worth of points down the drain, McManus’ collapse was a major component of the 31-27 loss that ended Green Bay’s season.
Both McManus and then-coordinator Rich Bisaccia kept their jobs … at first. Bisaccia stepped away weeks later, but McManus stayed long enough to earn a nice one-million-dollar roster bonus in March.
While McManus was not good in 2025, he was still a known quantity. It looked like Green Bay would stick with what they knew rather than look around the league for a straight-up replacement. However, it was always the plan to bring in competition in some capacity.
Instead, the Packers drafted Florida kicker Trey Smack, the best kicker in college football, and used two seventh-round picks to trade up to do so. With a new coordinator looking for his “guy” and such a hefty investment, the Packers hope Smack would win the job, rather than hoping McManus wins the role.
The immediate cap savings aren’t significant and are mostly canceled out by Smack’s rookie contract, and the Packers have dead money from releasing McManus.
While they did pay McManus that million-dollar bonus, what would be life-changing money for us mortals is chump change for NFL teams. The Packers likely view that spent money as insurance in case they couldn’t get Smack or another promising college kicker. The team was patient and didn’t want to enter the draft with an immediate need.
But why did the Packers release McManus now, rather than let him compete? In the iron-sharpens-iron world of NFL competition, surely letting Smack compete against the most accomplished kicker the Packers are likely to have could have brought out his best.
Perhaps McManus asked for a release, forecasting the situation. There are so few accomplished kickers in the league, and young, unproven ones carry a high risk. If released now, McManus can find another team before OTAs and establish himself as their No. 1 option rather than hope he can find a job after roster cuts right before the season starts.
Even if McManus didn’t specifically request his release, perhaps the team offered it as a kindness.
Either way, as soon as the Packers drafted Smack, the focus of their kicking competition shifted to a new paradigm. And McManus’s legacy in Green Bay, unfortunately, will be his collapse against Chicago and his terrible, AI-generated farewell.
Now, Smack will compete with Havrisik with a possibility of adding another kicker to the mix between now and training camp.
There is a risk that Smack struggles as a rookie, and the Packers won’t have a veteran option to save the day. But Gutekunst expressed a desire to be more patient with young specialists, and perhaps a new coordinator will create a better environment.
For better or worse, Smack will have every opportunity to win the job as the clear favorite. And McManus will now have the opportunity to find work elsewhere.
