No. 11 — Brandon McManus

The Green Bay Packers went 11-6 last season, sweeping the NFC West and the AFC South along the way.

Overall, though, no one in the building was happy.

The Packers failed to build on their terrific finish to the 2023 campaign, settled for the No. 7 seed in the NFC playoffs, and lost a Wild Card game to eventual Super Bowl champion Philadelphia.

Afterwards, general manager Brian Gutekunst turned up the heat on everybody in the building.

“We need to continue to ramp up our sense of urgency,” Gutekunst said. “I think it’s time we started competing for championships.”

Those are fair expectations.

The Packers return 20 of 22 starters, and appear to have upgraded the roster via free agency and the draft. With several third and fourth year players trending upward, Green Bay should be poised to make a move.

“I think they’re ready,” Gutekunst said.

Now, it’s time for the Packers to prove their G.M. right.

Green Bay’s first training camp practice is July 23. Between now and then I will count down the ‘30 Most Important Packers’ heading into the 2025 campaign.

At No. 11 is kicker Brandon McManus.

No. 11

Brandon McManus, K

Last season

McManus played remarkably well after signing with Green Bay on Oct. 16.

McManus made 20-of-21 field goals during the regular season (95.2%), the best percentage of his 11-year career and the second-best in team history. Mason Crosby — who made all 16 of his field goals in 2020 — is the only Packer to ever have a better year percentage-wise.

McManus also made all 30 of his extra points, meaning he was a sensational 98.0% on all kicks (50-of-51) during the regular season. McManus did miss a field goal in the Packers’ wild card loss to Philadelphia.

Not only did McManus have a career-year with Green Bay in 2024, he cleaned up the Packers’ two-year problem at the kicking position.

After Green Bay moved on from Crosby following the 2022 season, Anders Carlson missed more kicks (11) than anyone in football in 2023. Then Brayden Narveson was a dismal 12-of-17 on field goals (70.6%) the first six weeks of 2024 before he was waived.

McManus brought stability back to what had been the weakest spot on the roster and was a big reason Green Bay earned a trip to the postseason. McManus made game-winning field goals against both Houston and Jacksonville in his first two games as a Packer and remained virtually automatic the rest of the year.

“I’m glad he’s here,” Packers special teams coordinator Rich Bisaccia said late in the 2024 season. “He’s making us all better all the time, and I believe he’s got a lot of football left to him.”

McManus would have been a free agent when the new league year began on March 12. Instead, McManus signed a three-year, $15.3 million deal that includes $5 million in guaranteed money to stay in Green Bay.

Career to date

McManus has made 82.2 of his field goals and 97.4% of his extra points during a stellar 11-year career. Since 2014, McManus ranks third in the NFL in field goals (273) and points scored (1,161).

McManus spent the first nine years of his career with Denver, kicked for Jacksonville in 2023, then signed a one-year contract with Washington in March, 2024.

McManus was released by the Commanders, though, after two women who were working as flight attendants on a Jaguars’ trip to London in Sept., 2023, filed a lawsuit accusing him of sexual assault on the trip.

The NFL announced in Sept., 2024, that it found insufficient evidence that McManus violated the league’s personal conduct policy. The Packers, one of the NFL’s more conservative organizations when it comes to players with potential conduct issues, felt comfortable with those findings and signed McManus.

“I think the league did a really thorough investigation, and we leaned on that as we went through it,” Packers general manager Brian Gutekunst said after signing McManus.

McManus proceeded to have a career year in Green Bay and end the Packers’ 18-month scavenger hunt for a reliable kicker.

Outlook

The Packers had more than three decades of high-level kickers with Chris Jacke (1989-1996), Ryan Longwell (1997-2005) and Mason Crosby (2007-2022).

Then Green Bay bottomed out with Anders Carlson in 2023 and Brayden Narveson for six games in 2024.

Packers head coach Matt LaFleur said he prayed when Carlson kicked in 2023. Narveson had more misses than anyone in football the first six games of 2024.

The Packers also had kickers such as Greg Joseph, James Turner, Jack Podlesny and Alex Hale on their 90-man roster at various points.

The Packers found a winning lottery ticket last year, though, when they signed McManus on Oct. 16. The 33-year-old McManus should still have several solid years left, meaning Green Bay should be in good hands for the foreseeable future.

They Said It …

“There’s a veteran presence there. I think that was something you could tell from Day 1, his ability to kind of not blink at whatever conditions. Sometimes our conditions on the practice field probably are tougher than anything anybody’s gonna see during a game. His ability to handle those on a day-in and day-out basis really gave us a lot of comfort.” — Packers general manager Brian Gutekunst on McManus

“He’s been unbelievable. He’s just given us so much stability at that position. When he comes in, you pretty much know it’s going to be good. I hope he’s here a long time.” — Packers defensive tackle Kenny Clark said of McManus

“This will be my 13th training camp. … I have a lot of experience with each and every kick I’ve attempted and so I really just hone in on the history of what I’ve done in the past. Any time you go somewhere new, there’s an excitement, there’s a giddiness, you always want to perform for the team and the guys. I said a lot of these guys were in grade school or middle school when I was playing for Denver. Maybe they didn’t really know who I was, so there’s always I’ve got to prove myself.” — McManus on his approach to the season

THE TOP 30

• No. 30 — RB MarShawn Lloyd

• No. 29 — WR Dontayvion Wicks

• No. 28 — S Javon Bullard

• No. 27 — WR Savion Williams

• No. 26 — LB Isaiah McDuffie

• No. 25 — OL Jordan Morgan

• No. 24 — WR Matthew Golden

• No. 23 — CB Carrington Valentine

• No. 22 — WR Romeo Doubs

• No. 21 — QB Malik Willis

• N0. 20 — DE Lukas Van Ness

• No. 19 — RG Sean Rhyan

• No. 18 — LT Rasheed Walker

• No. 17 — DT Devonte Wyatt

• No. 16 — S Evan Williams

• No. 15 — CB Nate Hobbs

• No. 14 — LB Quay Walker

• No. 13 — OL Aaron Banks

• No. 12 — CB Keisean Nixon