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As the Green Bay Packers prepared for their Week 6 game against the Bengals, head coach Matt LaFleur expressed an injury worry. However, Brandon McManus shut down LaFleur’s claim of concern, according to a post on X by Matt Schneidman.
“Brandon McManus tells us he plans to kick on Sunday. Asked about LaFleur saying his right quad injury is a “major concern,” McManus said he didn’t talk to LaFleur about his injury and that LaFleur has his own thesaurus.”
The 12-year veteran has made 7 of 9 field goal attempts this season. He’s 11 of 12 on extra-point tries.
Sports Illustrated must have the same thesaurus as LaFleur, as it listed 10 options for the Packers if McManus can’t suit up. That’s right. Ten. 10. Ten. Why?
That seems like a less-than-desirable use of a perfectly good web page.
First, the true list is probably like two. But what does it say about kicking in the NFL that there are 10 guys potentially available? Do kickers sit on the sofa and wait for an injury or multiple misses? And the rush to the backyard for rapid-fire kicks to see if they still have it?
Strange things, indeed.
But then again, with the new NFL rules that put teams in field goal position after gaining only maybe 20 yards, a kicker becomes more important, right? But then again, all kickers are hitting from 50-plus yards like the extra points of the old days.
Why does the NFL keep making things easier for kickers?
And how weird is this: The Packers could turn to 25-year-old Irish native Mark McNamee, according to packerswire.com.
He was a goalkeeper in Gaelic football before pursuing an American football career as part of the NFL’s “International Player Pathway” program earlier this year,” Zach Kruse wrote. “The Packers signed him after their developmental kicker, Alex Hale, suffered an injury early in training camp and needed to miss time.”
McNamee made one field goal from 43 yards but missed another from 39 yards out, and he went 2-for-3 on extra points.
Good luck with that direction, Packers.
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