GREEN BAY, Wis. — The Green Bay Packers have swung and missed on a young kicker for the second straight year.
After watching rookie Brayden Narveson miss his fifth field goal in six games, the Packers are moving on, signing veteran Brandon McManus, who last kicked for the Jacksonville Jaguars.
A source confirmed an ESPN report that McManus is signing a one-year deal with the Packers.
The team did not announce the move. It’s likely McManus was in for a workout Tuesday and the Packers decided to sign him. The Packers aren’t likely to keep two kickers on the roster, so the club will probably announce Narveson’s release Wednesday.
The Packers are not expected to make a move with practice squad kicker Alex Hale, which means it’s not likely Narveson will be brought back to join the practice squad. He will be subject to waivers once he is released and will be a free agent if he clears waivers.
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The signing will draw attention and not just because the Packers are giving up on Narveson.
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McManus became available to sign after the NFL ruled Sept. 30 that he did not violate the personal conduct policy related to a civil lawsuit accusing him of sexual assault during a charter flight to London last year when he was playing for the Jaguars,
The anonymous plaintiffs accused McManus of rubbing himself against them and grinding against them during the Jaguars’ flight to London on Sept. 28, 2023. McManus’ attorney has called the suit a “shakedown” and said McManus never met the two women. An amended complaint was filed in early September with both women’s names revealed after a judge ruled the case did not meet Florida law for plaintiff anonymity, according to the Washington Post.
General manager Brian Gutekunst has stayed away from signing players with any unlawful or questionable behavior in their background, even when they have been cleared of any crime. Gutekunst passed on punter Matt Araiza, a year ago, even though it was deemed he had left a party where a woman was later raped.
McManus is entering his 11th season in the NFL, spending all but last season with the Denver Broncos. He hit 30 of 37 field goals for the Jaguars last year, including 25 of 27 field goals from inside the 50-yard line.
The Jaguars chose not to re-sign McManus after he became a free agent and he signed with the Washington Commanders in March. The Commanders released him in June when news of the alleged sexual assault took place.
.For his career, McManus has hit 81.4% of his field goal attempts (253 of 311) and 97.2% of his extra points (312 of 321).
(This story was updated to add new information.)