Packers put Anders Carlson on notice by signing former rival

The Green Bay Packers selected kicker Anders Carlson in the sixth round of the 2023 NFL Draft — the last of three kickers. Carlson coasted through training camp without any competition, but after his inconsistent rookie season, he won't have that luxury in 2024.

"I'm excited to see what [Carlson] does in Year 2," general manager Brian Gutekunst said at the NFL Scouting Combine, "but there will be competition in the room."

On Tuesday, Gutekunst found that competition. The Packers signed veteran kicker Greg Joseph, according to his agent, Brett Tessler. The signing comes as no surprise — Joseph was the best kicker available in free agency.

Packers sign former rival Greg Joseph for kicking competition

Joseph spent the past three seasons with the Minnesota Vikings. The 29-year-old veteran is 100-of-121 on field goal attempts (82.6 percent) and 146-of-162 on extra point attempts (90.1 percent) during his five years in the league. During his stint in Minnesota, he set the franchise record for the longest field goal with a 61-yarder during the 2022 regular season. Joseph also set the record for most game-winning field goals in a single season with five field goals during the Vikings' 2022 season.

Tessler said Joseph "had other interest but liked this opportunity." If that's the case, Joseph must be really confident in himself, considering he'll have to face Carlson in a legitimate kicking competition during Green Bay's training camp.

Carlson had a promising start to his rookie season, as he didn't miss a single kick through the first five weeks of the season. Then, he hit a rookie wall — Carlson struggled for the remainder of the 2023 campaign, and his missed field goals were highlighted by Green Bay's slim margin of defeat. Carlson missed field goals in two-point losses to the Denver Broncos and New York Giants, and an extra point in a four-point loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers. Perhaps worst of all, Carlson missed a 41-yard field goal in the fourth quarter of the NFC Divisional Round loss against the San Francisco 49ers. The field goal would have given the Packers a 24-17 lead.

Carlson missed a league-high 11 field goals and five extra points during the regular season. If he wants to beat out Joseph, he'll have to prove that he can be much more reliable in 2024.