The Green Bay Packers enter the offseason with some obvious and major needs if they hope to improve next season. Cornerback, defensive tackle, and interior offensive line are clearly at or near the top of the list. But there is another position that the Packers need to add competition at this offseason if they hope to be better in 2026 than they were in 2025.

The Packers Need to Add Competition at This Position: The Incumbent

Brandon McManus joined the Packers midway through the 2024 season, and he solved the team’s kicking issues with a strong season. McManus connected on 20-of-21 field goals that season and made all 30 of his extra points. The one missed field goal he had that season was on a windy and rainy day at Lambeau Field that was certainly understandable under the circumstances.

Unfortunately, McManus struggled in 2025. Overall, he made 24-of-30 field goals for the season and missed one of 33 extra points. McManus was perfect from inside 40 yards, hitting on all 18 of his attempts. But from 40 yards out or more, the former Temple star hit on just 6-of-12 tries. Throughout the league, kickers were making long field goals at a higher rate than ever.

In the playoff loss to the Bears, McManus missed two field goals and an extra point. The Packers ultimately lost the game by four points, 31-27.

McManus suffered through a quad injury at midseason that caused him to miss three games. Unfortunately, McManus and the coaching staff did not handle the injury properly and McManus kicked some games when he did not seem healthy. As a result, he missed several kicks he normally would have made.

The Present Challenger

The other kicker currently on the Packers roster is Lucas Havrisik. Havrisik made all four of the field goals he tried in the three games he replaced McManus. He also set a new Packers record when he kicked a 61-yard field goal.

Unfortunately, Havrisik missed two extra points in those three games, making 7-of-9 for the season.

For his career, Havrisik has lacked consistency. He made 79.2 percent of his kicks in nine games with the Rams and three with the Packers. Havrisik played nine games for Los Angeles in 2023, bounced around practice squads in 2024 and then spent 2025 on the Packers practice squad except for the three games he replaced McManus.

The Packers did sign Havrisik to a futures contract after the season ended. That means he should be back at OTAs and training camp to compete for the kicking job next season.

The Packers Need to Add Competition at This Position: The Outlook

McManus remains the incumbent but is he good enough to hold on to the job after an inconsistent season? He carries a $5.3 million cap hit if he’s on the roster next season.

If he makes the team, Havrisik would carry a cap hit of just $1.075 million in 2026.

The Packers have a new special teams coordinator after Rich Bisaccia abruptly left the team last month. Bisaccia favored McManus. Will his departure and the arrival of Cam Achord as the new special teams coordinator change the way the team looks at its kickers?

The Packers should want to add some competition to this group. Hitting only 50 percent of your kicks from 40 yards out or longer is unacceptable in the modern NFL. Last season, kickers across the league made 84 percent of their kicks from 40-49 yards and 71 percent of their kicks from 50 or more yards. Obviously, McManus was too far below that number in 2025.

GM Brian Gutekunst should look to add an undrafted player after this year’s draft or add another street free agent to the competition at least at OTAs and minicamp.

We’ll see how Gutekunst handles the situation in the coming months but an upgrade here is definitely needed.

 

 

 

 

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