Former Viking Released by Packers
The Green Bay Packers’ kicking competition became skinnier on Wednesday after a former Minnesota Vikings specialist exited stage left.
Former Viking Released by Packers
He’s Jack Podlesny, on deck to hit free agency. KPRC2’s Aaron Wilson tweeted, “Packers released Jack Podlesny.”
But have no fear, two men with quasi-Vikings ties remain in the Packers’ kicking battle, with Greg Joseph as a contender for the job, accompanied by incumbent kicker Anders Carlson, who is Daniel Carlson’s brother. Daniel Carlson kicked for Minnesota in 2018 before a swift release. He later latched onto the Las Vegas Raiders and morphed into one of the NFL’s top kickers.
Podlesny tried out for Green Bay’s roster last September, didn’t sign a deal, and later joined the club on a futures agreement in January. The relationship didn’t last long.
The Georgia alumnus was a member of the Vikings’ summer roster for about four months during the 2022 offseason, intertwining in a mini-kicking competition with the aforementioned Joseph. He ultimately left the team in August via roster cut, but some believed he could have the juice to steal Joseph’s job.
Podlesny led the NCAA in scoring in 2022 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.
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.
Interestingly, the Vikings drafted the man who took over for Podlesny in April. He’s Will Reichard and will likely win the kicking job this summer over XFL kicker Parker Romo.
Podlesny turned 24 in March and has not yet kicked in an NFL game.
Another WR3 Available to Vikings
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 MIN 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.
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