Dec 12, 2021; Green Bay, Wisconsin, USA; Green Bay Packers helmet. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Hanisch-USA TODAY Sports.
The Green Bay Packers share a first-place tie atop the NFC North through three weeks, equipped with a 2-1 record along with the Detroit Lions.
The Minnesota Vikings and Chicago Bears live in the basement at 0-3.
And on Monday, one day after the Packers surmounted a 17-point deficit to topple the New Orleans Saints 18-17 without top playmakers Aaron Jones and Christian Watson, Green Bay held auditions for a couple of players. One was for former Vikings kicker Jack Podlesny.
KPRC2’s Aaron Wilson tweeted, “Packers worked out Jack Podlesny and Parker White.”:
Podlesny was a member of the Vikings summer roster for about four months during the offseason, intertwining in a mini-kicking competition with current kicker Greg Joseph. The Georgia alumnus ultimately left the team in August via roster cut, but some believed he could have the juice to steal Joseph’s job.
The Packers current kicker, Anders Carlson, the brother of former Vikings kicker Daniel Carlson, delivered a game-winning field goal last weekend versus the Saints and is perfect via field goals and extra points so far this season. Auditioning Podlesny must be a depth tryout.
Podlesny led the NCAA in scoring last year with 151 points, so he has the “volume guy” attribute on his resume. He also connected on 83.9% of field goal attempts, the third-best mark in the country. The man is accurate.
His leg strength, though, might be a little suspect, and if he doesn’t oust Joseph this summer, fans can attribute the result to it. NFL.com’s Lance Zierlein summarized Podlesny’s skillset leading up to the 2023 NFL Draft, “Podlesny has kicked in some big games, but he missed two attempts in a narrow victory over Ohio State during last season’s playoff semifinal. He also has a poor success rate on kicks from distance. Consistency and power are key, and Podlesny falls a little short in those areas.”
In the NCAA, extra points are still automatic from 20 yards away, and the Bulldog had no problems in that area. On his strengths, Podlesny has big-game kicking experience — because that’s what one does at the University of Georgia. He kicked at Georgia for three years, tabulating a 61 for 74 (82.9%) success rate on field goals and hitting 182 of 184 extra points.
The suspect part, however, even exceeds the traditional beyond-50-yards metric. Podlesny produced a 54% accuracy on field goals of 40+ yards at Georgia, a stat that could absolutely be a nonstarter in the pros and likely why he didn’t win the Vikings kicking job this summer.
The Vikings play the Packers at Lambeau Field in 33 days.
Dustin Baker is a political scientist who graduated from the University of Minnesota in 2007. Subscribe to his daily YouTube Channel, VikesNow. He hosts a podcast with Bryant McKinnie, which airs every Wednesday with Raun Sawh and Sal Spice. His Vikings obsession dates back to 1996. Listed guilty pleasures: Peanut Butter Ice Cream, ‘The Sopranos,’ Basset Hounds, and The Doors (the band).
All statistics provided by Pro Football Reference / Stathead; all contractual information provided by OverTheCap.com.