Perhaps the Packers will indeed go into training camp with three kickers. After the team waived Jack Podlesny to bring its kicker count to two post-minicamp, another specialist is now on the roster.
Green Bay submitted a successful waiver claim for James Turner on Thursday, per NFL.com’s Mike Garafolo. The Lions waived Turner to make room for UFL addition Jake Bates. Turner will join Anders Carlson and Greg Joseph on the Packers’ 90-man offseason roster.
While Podlesny was given a reserve/futures deal in January, Turner entered the league as a UDFA months later. He spent the past four years as a primary kicker, first at Louisville before a final season at Michigan. Turner’s transfer allowed him to kick for the national championship-winning Wolverines last season.
Turner served as Louisville’s primary kicker from 2020-22 before using his COVID-19 year of eligibility at the Big Ten program. Turner made 90.9% of his field goal tries during his final season at the ACC school (20-for-22); he connected on 85.7% of his tries (18-for-21) with the Big Ten program. While Turner struggled with the Cardinals in 2021, his past two years served as a rebound of sorts. Turner showed enough to secure an offseason commitment from the Lions, but the UFL’s Michigan team ended up affecting the NFL club’s kicker setup.
The Packers used a sixth-round pick on Carlson last year, and he replaced 16-year kicker Mason Crosby. Counting the playoffs, Carlson missed six extra points last season and misfired on four field goals in the regular season’s second half — before missing a 41-yarder in a three-point divisional-round loss to the 49ers. The Packers added Joseph in late March.
A recent rumor about the Packers considering a three-kicker training camp competition lost some steam with the Podlesny move, but Green Bay will use Detroit’s recent UFL addition to keep that reality in play.