The problem surfaced on Jan. 20, 2024.
Anders Carlson’s 41-yard field goal in Santa Clara in the NFC Divisional Playoffs was wide left.
It’s been eight months and that problem hasn’t been fixed. Packers general manager Brian Gutekunst brought in plenty of competition for training camp and ultimately settled on a rookie kicker with a very strong leg.
Brayden Narveson has missed four field goals in four games — five if you count the missed field goal that was taken off the board due to a defensive penalty in Tennessee.
What’s worse is that he’s 3-for-6 from 40-49 yards. Can Packers coach Matt LaFleur rely on him from that distance? If he’s staring at a fourth-and-4 or a 46-yard field goal, what is he going to choose?
First of all, let me say that the Packers didn’t lose to the Vikings 31-29 because of Narveson. Obviously, his six points would’ve helped, but the Packers only hurried Sam Darnold seven times and made him awfully comfortable. It also took a half for Jordan Love to step into his throws. The entire first half, he was throwing low or wide to his receivers and that was mainly because of his footwork.
But now Gutekunst can see that the problem hasn’t been taken care of. Is he willing to admit that he made a mistake and go after 34-year-old Randy Bullock, who is a career 83.4 percent kicker. He was also 8-for-11 in 2022 and 2023 from 40-49 yards.
I know that Mason Crosby is 40 and obviously doesn’t have the same leg that he used to, but at least he’s historically been consistent when the weather gets nasty. Lambeau Field felt like a July day in South Florida on Sunday. I saw more people baking in the hot sun on a Chamber of Commerce day.
What’s scary is, if Narveson is going to miss two kicks on a day like that, what is he going to do when it’s 10 degrees in December with 25 mph wind gusts?
The Packers just need consistency. I know that LaFleur was giving Narveson a vote of confidence, but how many players inside the locker room feel overly confident when No. 44 steps on the field?
Narveson hasn’t been called on to make a game-winning kick in the waning moments of a game yet. Is that something that LaFleur wants to see?
Because if LaFleur is changing his coaching style and his approach based on the kicker’s lack of production, then Narveson has to go.
This season is still young and Narveson can still turn things around. The question is, how long are the Packers willing to wait?
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Cory Jennerjohn is a graduate from UW-Oshkosh and has been in sports media for over 15 years. He was a co-host on “Clubhouse Live” and has also done various radio and TV work as well. He has written for newspapers, magazines and websites. He currently is a columnist for CHTV and also does various podcasts. He recently earned his Masters degree from the University of Iowa. He can be found on Twitter: @Coryjennerjohn
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