Packers’ Kicking Competition (Temporarily?) Ends Before It Began

GREEN BAY, Wis. – Once upon a time, the Green Bay Packers had the potential of having a three-man kicking competition.

Instead, there might be no competition at all.

To deal with the calf injury that has veteran long snapper Matt Orzech on the PUP list, the Packers signed veteran snapper Cal Adomitis after Thursday’s practice, a source told Packers On SI. The corresponding roster move, according to a source, was releasing kicker Lenny Krieg.

Packers needed a long snapper.

They got one. ⬇️https://t.co/yN0xXgTKmV
— Bill Huber (@BillHuberNFL) July 30, 2026

Krieg spent two days at training camp without kicking the ball in a live setting.

The Packers drafted Trey Smack in the sixth round, at which time he joined incumbent kicker Brandon McManus and returning practice-squad player Lucas Havrisik.

At the time, general manager Brian Gutekunst said there was no reason why the team couldn’t take three kickers into the offseason practices. Instead, a couple weeks after the draft, he released McManus to make it a two-man competition.

On the eve of training camp on Tuesday, Gutekunst made another move. He released Havrisik, who made a franchise-record 61-yard field goal at Arizona, and signed Krieg, a native of Berlin, Germany, who made a 57-yard field goal for Atlanta last preseason.

“Lenny Krieg came in and kicked really well for us in a workout the other day, so we made that move,” Gutekunst said before the first practice of camp. “He’s an international player, as well, so that gives us some flexibility as far as practice squad.”

While a source at the time said the Packers would make Krieg their International Player Pathway participant, meaning a roster exemption, the team ultimately decided to use that designation on tight end Thomas Yassmin, a rookie from Utah by way of Sydney, Australia.

That set up a competition between Smack, the first kicker off the board in this year’s draft, and Krieg, who was good enough to get a signing bonus when he joined the Falcons last offseason.

So – for now, at least – Smack will be flying solo at training camp.

“Obviously, we really like Trey,” Gutekunst said. “It wasn’t something where we went into the draft last year saying, ‘We’re going to go target a kicker and try to draft a kicker.’ He was the highest-ranked guy on our board when that fell and we felt he has a chance to be a very, very good kicker in this league and be one of those championship-level kickers, otherwise we wouldn’t have taken him.

“As we know with all positions, but particularly kickers, it can take some time to become a great kicker in this league. We really like Trey, we really like what he’s made of and we’ll kind of see how it goes, but we’re really optimistic that he has a chance to be one of those guys.”

Krieg is gone. But he might not be forgotten. It’s possible the Packers will bring him back once they’re down to one long snapper. That might not take long; Gutekunst said Orzech’s injury was “nothing long term.”

Until then, Smack will be the only kicker on the roster. It’s the latest development in a bizarre approach to the team’s uncertain kicking situation after Smack’s shaky offseason.

Rather than have a real, honest-to-goodness kicking competition, the Packers opted to release their veterans and set up a battle between two rookies (officially, a rookie and a first-year player). While that approach worked in the past, when undrafted rookie Ryan Longwell beat out third-round pick Brett Conway in 1997, having a proven vet on the roster might have made Smack a bit more battle-tested for the big kicks that await once the season begins.

The Packers need a kicker capable of making those big kicks after McManus flubbed three attempts in the playoffs.

“That’s the most important thing is to be able to make those kinds of kicks,” Gutekunst said. “So, I’d like to have some patience here but, at the end of the day, any player, if he’s costing us opportunities to win football games, then we’re going to have to look at that. But again, we really have a lot of confidence in Trey and what he’s going to be able to do but he is a rookie kicker, and he’s got a lot to learn and earn before he gets there.”

If Gutekunst’s patience wears thin, creating a competition – whether it’s by bringing back Krieg or adding some other kicker – will require only one phone call to a kicker on his ready list.

Whatever the circumstances and the state of the depth chart, Smack has his own approach. As he put it during rookie minicamp, “It’s kind of you vs. you. I don’t really pay attention to anybody else but myself because I’m the one that’s got to put it through the uprights.”

The addition of Adomitis will finally allow the Packers to get Smack started. He got three kicks at Thursday’s practice – all 25-yarders with backup center Sean Rhyan filling in as the long snapper but with no rush.

With Adomitis, who snapped for the Bengals for three seasons and for the Eagles for part of last season, the Packers will have an experienced snapper to give Smack the proper timing.

“I believe long-snappers are drafted/picked up more on need-based things on continuity. If the connection/chemistry is off, then it normally doesn't work out,” Adomitis said at the 2022 Scouting Combine, when he was the only snapper.

“Versatility is the name of the game when it comes to our roles. I appreciated (Pitt) coach (Pat) Narduzzi having me do different football drills, especially linebacker drills. It kept me versatile and well prepared for the Combine where sometimes they ask you to do different things.”

Day 2 of Packers training camp is complete.

What happened today?

Quite a bit. Here's the Player of the Day, Play of the Day, the winning unit, injury updates, lineup combos, big plays and more. ⬇️https://t.co/FEhUDOOHtu
— Bill Huber (@BillHuberNFL) July 30, 2026

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