Anders Carlson was probably the most polarizing figure on the Packers last year. Every time he lined up for an extra point, fingernails hit the floor. 

Carlson was drafted in the sixth round of the 2023 NFL Draft. Many, including myself, were surprised that they took a kicker in the draft instead of waiting and picking up someone as an undrafted rookie free agent. 

Last season, Carlson missed five extra points. The strong legged kicker was also 7-for-13 from 40-plus yards. 

It got so bad last year that even in obvious kicking situations, Packers coach Matt LaFleur had a decision to make. The Packers had a fresh rookie kicker with a strong leg and had to think twice about using him. That’s like buying a brand new car and taking the bus everywhere. 

But the Packers aren’t sitting pat. Green Bay just added James Turner off of waivers after being cut by the Lions. On March 28, the Packers signed five-year NFL veteran Greg Joseph. What stands out to me about Joseph is that he has playoff pedigree. He has kicked in four playoff games, including the AFC title game in 2019 where he was 3-for-3 on extra points and 1-for-1 on his lone 30-yard field goal attempt. 

The Packers are saying that the window is now for this team. They were very close from winning two playoff games last year and the expectations are only going to rise this year. 

I don’t think this is empty competition either. They aren’t bringing in guys just to push Carlson. They are bringing in 29-year-old Joseph and giving him the opportunity to snatch the job away. All he has to do is be consistent, because he has missed 12 extra points in the last three seasons. There is no need for the Packers to add someone new if that’s what they’re getting. 

The job is Carlson’s to lose. The Packers took him for a reason. He showed flashes of his impressive leg last year on kickoffs, but with the new kickoff rules this year, does it even pay to have a kicker that can show off an impressive kickoff leg?

Last year was a honeymoon period for Carlson. The 26-year-old needs to be more consistent and more importantly, he needs to be the big-game kicker that the Packers dreamed of when they surprised just about everybody when they took him 207th overall. 

Kicker is probably the most overlooked position in all of football. But come the end of July, that position will be the most watched and most scrutinized. 

And for good reason. It would be different if the Packers were coming into this season with zero expectations, but 12 regular season wins is a real possibility. Achieving that though means not leaving any points on the field.