Paul Bretl | 8/1/2024
GREEN BAY, Wis. — Through eight training camp practices, the Packers competition at kicker between Greg Joseph and Anders Carlson had been fairly close. However, on Thursday, the battle took a turn in Joseph’s favor.
Joseph would begin the day 22-for-24 and Carlson 21-for-24. During the first round of field goals, which consisted of kicks from 41, 45, and 47 yards, Joseph would make all three of his attempts while Carlson would make only one. The second time through, with kicks from 42, 49, and 51 yards, Joseph again made all three, while Carlson made only two. Practice would then conclude with both kickers making 58 yarders.
“It didn’t feel like too much out there,” said Joseph at his locker about the wind. “The first field-goal set, it felt like it was a little in our face and the second set, a little at our back and then for the team situation kick, it didn’t feel like there was much at all.”
And just like that, Joseph is now 29-for-31 in camp (93.5%) and Carlson is 25-for-31 (80.6%).
“Feels good,” said Joseph about where his kicking game is at. “Like I said, I don’t look at stats. I don’t look at yesterday. I’m not looking at tomorrow. Look at today and literally seeing my foot through each and every ball one at a time like singularly and that’s it.”
For Carlson, not only are the three missed field goal attempts noteworthy, but all three misses were to the left, which is the same issue he faced last season. Carlson spent the offseason focusing on his angles and approach leading up to the attempt in an effort to correct that.
“For the most part, my field goal misses I just felt like were left,” said Carlson during the first week of training camp. “As I looked at it, that’s what I worked on leading into OTAs. Like I said, I feel like I did a better job and I like my ball flight.”
Joseph has been in the NFL since 2018 after going undrafted out of Florida Atlantic. He had spent the last three seasons with the Vikings. Over his career, he has made 83 percent of his field goal attempts and has been extremely reliable on kicks under 40 yards, missing only one of his 65 attempts.
From 40-plus yards, however, Joseph is only 38-of-50, including 16-for-28 from over 50 yards. Playing in Cleveland in 2018, Joseph does have experience kicking in the elements, but he is just 3-for-7 in his career at Lambeau Field.
“70-75 percent, I’d say,” said Joseph when asked how much of kicking is mental. “I think that’s what separates really good collegiate kickers from NFL kickers. All of us, you know, a lot of us can kick the ball far, but it’s I think that mental edge, that mental approach is massive and it’s the difference between a good kicker and a great kicker.”
Perhaps an advantage for Joseph in this situation is the experience he has. He’s been in training camp kicking competitions before, has more NFL experience, and more field goal attempts in high leverage situations, which includes making five game-winners in the 2022 season alone.
These experiences, along with the help from personal coaches, have helped Joseph develop a process where he’s only focused on what he has to do to be successful. Joseph isn’t watching Carlson kick and he’s not worried about whether he’s 7-for-7 or 0-for-7 that day. The only kick that matters is the next one and that his attention is on his pre-kick routine.
“Nope,” said Joseph when asked if he watches Carlson. “I go through my steps, my cues, my process that, you know, took time to cultivate and make sure works for me and I’m going through that. And if you happen to hear say good job or oh, like, I don’t care. Block it out. All I’m focused on is seeing my foot through that next ball.”
Of course, both kickers are being evaluated on a daily basis, but LaFleur said during minicamp that the competition may not truly begin to take shape until there are more “high pressure, game-like” situations. With Family Night on Saturday, two joint practices, and three preseason games, those opportunities are coming.
Without question, Joseph had the better practice, but it’s still early in the process. One bad day or one good day won’t determine the winner of this positional battle. However, having said that, what took place on Thursday is at least noteworthy.
“I just get into a rhythm where, I know it sounds easy to say, me versus me, but I believe that if I kick to the level that I’m capable of, it’s me versus me and I’m going to put my best foot forward, make as many kicks as I can and the rest will take care of itself,” said Joseph.