GREEN BAY – The Packers have Mason Crosby as their kicker and Crosby is one of the longest-tenured players at his position.
However, he’s coming off one of his worst seasons as a pro. He’s also on the backend of his career.
So, it makes sense that the Packers need to insure themselves in case something with Crosby falls through between now and the start of the season.
And, competition is always a good option in the NFL.
The Packers initially had Dominik Eberle on the roster as Crosby’s competition, but that changed Monday when they waived him in order to claim Gabe Brkic off waivers from the Vikings. ESPN‘s Field Yates initially broke the news.
The Packers claimed K Gabe Brkic off of waivers from the Vikings and waived K Dominik Eberle.
— Field Yates (@FieldYates) June 13, 2022
Brkic was a four-year player for the Oklahoma Sooners from 2018-2021. He made all but one PAT (159/160) and finished with a very effective 82.6% make percentage (57/69) as a three-year starter. He went undrafted following his senior year in 2021.
It’s an interesting decision considering Brkic is a rookie who has never attempted a single kick in the NFL. Meanwhile, Eberle made 2-of-3 field goal attempts with a long of 51-yards while playing for the Texans last year. His one miss was from 50+ yards out.
Eberle also made all five PATs, but his 63.0-yard average on kickoffs tied for 29th out of 63 qualifying players in 2021.
The Packers also waived kicker J.J. Molson a few weeks ago.
It’s clear that Rich Bisaccia is exhausting all options when it comes to fixing the disaster that was last year’s special teams unit.
Featured image via MARK HOFFMAN/MILWAUKEE JOURNAL SENTINEL / USA TODAY NETWORK
