The Green Bay Packers claimed kicker Brayden Narveson off waivers on Wednesday, one day after releasing 2023 sixth-round pick Anders Carlson.
When Carlson was cut, the assumption was that veteran kicker Greg Joseph would be the team’s starter. After the former Minnesota Vikings player struggled in the preseason, however, and Narveson shined this summer with the Tennessee Titans, the latter now appears to have the edge.
The addition of Narveson (an undrafted free agent who spent 2023 at North Carolina State) will also likely extend a shocking Packers streak to two decades.
Prior to the addition of Narveson, it appeared that streak would come to an end at 19 years.
The 24-year-old not only had a sold preseason with Tennessee but was nearly automatic on extra points across five college seasons, including three with Western Kentucky (2020-22).
He led the CUSA in field goal percentage (92.9) with the Hilltoppers in the pandemic-altered 2020 campaign and was fourth in the conference (79.3) in 2021. After dropping to 71.4% in 2022, Narveson bounced back to finish his college career with the Wolfpack by going 18-for-23 (78.3) to rank eighth in the ACC.
Despite his solid preseason, Narveson faced an uphill battle to earn the Titans’ starting job this fall as the team already had one-time Pro Bowler Nick Folk on the roster. The 39-year-old Folk had one of his best seasons in 2023 (his first with Tennessee), going 29-for-30 on field goals for a career-high and league-best 96.7% success rate.
Green Bay drafted Carlson (the younger brother of Las Vegas Raiders one-time All-Pro kicker Daniel Carlson) in the sixth round of last year’s draft. The Auburn product had an inconsistent rookie season, however, which was capped by his crucial 41-yard field-goal miss in the team’s 24-21 NFC divisional round loss against the San Francisco 49ers.
Prior to the younger Carlson taking over in 2023, the Packers had 2007 sixth-round pick Mason Crosby as their kicker for 16 straight seasons. Crosby played 258 straight regular-season games for Green Bay from 2007-22, becoming one of the 21st-century faces of the franchise along with Aaron Rodgers.
The Colorado product earned eight NFC Special Teams Player of the Week honors over the years and helped the team win Super Bowl XLV in 2011. Crosby made all four of his extra point attempts and his only field goal try in the victory and went 31-for-35 (88.6%) on field goals and a perfect 70-for-70 on extra points in 23 playoff games.
Crosby spent time on the Los Angeles Rams’ and New York Giants’ practice squads in 2023, but only suited up for three games with the latter squad.
Regardless of how Narveson’s career plays out, it looks like he’ll hold at least a small place in Packers lore.
