New Packers Kicker Fumbles First Chance to Impress

The Green Bay Packers haven’t been shy in their intentions about having a kicking competition this offseason after the struggles of Anders Carlson last season. 

Carlson made 27-of-33 field goals as a rookie but noticeably had issues kicking the ball 40-plus yards out as he was 7-of-13. Based on those issues, the Packers signed veteran Greg Joseph and rookie free agent James Turner to give Carlson some competition.

Turner was surprisingly released in June by the Detroit Lions after Detroit signed UFL standout Jake Bates. The former University of Michigan kicker now in Green Bay, got the first shot in the training camp on Monday to make his presence known in the competition.

Turner handled all the field goals and went 4-for-6, according to ESPN’s Rob Demovsky. But the two field goals he missed were from 43 and 46 yards out, which isn’t what the Packers want to see.

As we previously mentioned, Carlson had his issues from 40-plus yards out last year and those are makeable field goals. Turner will certainly get another shot in the competition, but missing those two doesn’t help his cause.

With Turner finished his day of kicking, it will be interesting to see how Carlson and Joseph will perform. There’s a good amount of pressure on the second-year kicker to be almost perfect at camp as his roster spot is not solidified.

Joseph will likely provide the most competition for Carlson as he’s been kicking for the last five seasons. Last year with the Minnesota Vikings, the veteran kicker made 24-of-30 field goals (80 percent) and 36-of-38 extra points (94.7 percent). 

However, Joseph also struggled from 40-plus yards out, only making 7-of-13 field goals. That said, if he cannot make those field goals consistently in camp, Carlson’s chances of making the team will drastically increase.

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