Former Viking Released on His Damn Birthday
The business aspect of the NFL smacked former Minnesota Vikings kicker Greg Joseph in the face on Monday.
The San Francisco 49ers released former Vikings specialist in a round of roster moves, ending his brief stint with the team and concluding a summer roster battle.
Celebrating his 31st birthday, the San Francisco 49ers cut ties with Joseph, prematurely ending a summer roster battle that many believed would bleed into the preseason.
The South African kicker will once again hit free agency — familiar territory for the birthday boy.
Greg Joseph Out in San Francisco
It’s back to the drawing board for Joseph.
That’s a Wrap for Greg Joseph in San Francisco
Jake Moody has prevailed, winning a kicking battle in San Francisco and resulting in Joseph’s birthday release.
NBC Sports‘ Myles Simmons wrote Monday, “The 49ers have made a series of moves on Monday, including effectively ending their kicker competition — at least for now. San Francisco announced the club has signed defensive lineman Bradlee Anae, defensive lineman Bruce Hector, safety Jaylen Mahoney, cornerback Fabian Moreau, and offensive lineman Isaiah Prince.”
“As corresponding moves, the club waived cornerback Tre Avery, receiver Isaiah Neyor, quarterback Tanner Mordecai, and tight end Mason Pline. Additionally, San Francisco released kicker Greg Joseph.”
Vikings fans will remember Joseph quite well; he served as the primary kicker in 2021, 2022, and 2023 — which is a long time per the franchise’s suspect kicking standard.
Now, a Waiting Game for Joseph
Joseph will now hit the open market and cross his fingers for another audition. The man is wildly experienced with the process. More than most, in fact.
Here’s Joseph’s NFL resume to date:
- Miami Dolphins (2018)
- Cleveland Browns (2018)
- Carolina Panthers (2019)
- Tennessee Titans (2019)
- Tampa Bay Buccaneers (2020)
- Minnesota Vikings (2021–2023)
- Green Bay Packers (2024)
- Detroit Lions (2024)
- New York Giants (2024)
- Washington Commanders (2024)
- New York Jets (2024)
- San Francisco 49ers (2025)
Joseph has kicked for 38% of all NFL teams since 2018 and will hope to make it 41% in the coming weeks.
Career with Vikings
Joseph’s tenure in Minnesota was the definition of bittersweet. He stuck around for three seasons because his kicking proved to be cold-blooded in clutch situations after an awful debacle against the Arizona Cardinals in 2021, his second game with the franchise.
Back-to-back Vikings coaching staffs, led by Mike Zimmer and Kevin O’Connell, trusted Joseph with the game on line. He usually delivered.
However, with “ordinary” field goals — and extra points — Joseph booted kicks at a bottom-eight percentage around the NFL. He had a personal paradox: playing marvelously when it mattered the most, but also floundering in 1st, 2nd, and 3rd Quarters, at least compared to his NFL peers.
Minnesota let Joseph depart after the 2023 campaign and drafted Alabama’s Will Reichard a couple of months later.
Resuming the Jake Moody Experiment
Meanwhile, speaking of underachieving kickers, the 49ers have forged a path for Moody to get his career back on track in 2025.
He netted a terrible 70.6% field goal accuracy in 2024, despite being selected in Round 3 of the 2023 NFL Draft. Kickers don’t typically get picked that high, meaning Moody had a high bar before strutting onto the playing field.
With Joseph gone, San Francisco has signaled the utmost trust in Moody, who desperately needs a clean season to maintain a long career.
More on Joseph’s Exit
49ers Special Teams coordinator Brant Boyer had said over the weekend about the kicking battle, “Well, I think they’re really close. I think that they’re both doing a great job. There’s not a ton of separation there. Both of them rebounded from some days that they could have kicked better, and I thought they kicked pretty solid today.”
“It’s just a matter of who’s going to execute when the game comes down to it, and they’re competing. They’re doing everything we’re asking them to do, and we’re looking forward to see how it’s going to shake out.”
The battle wasn’t that close if it ended before the preseason.
NinerWire‘s Mike Masal mentioned about the kicking battle’s end: “With both kickers performing roughly the same through two weeks of practices, the upcoming preseason showdowns with the Denver Broncos, Las Vegas Raiders and Los Angeles Chargers could really swing the battle one way or another.”
“The 49ers should be hoping that Moody steps up and delivers with his new mechanics, as having the younger kicker that they can rely on for years to come would be a great building block.”
Joseph will likely find a team’s practice squad before too long. It’s his modus operandi.
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