Rookie Kicker Trey Smack Delivers Some Antacid at Packers Minicamp

GREEN BAY, Wis. – If Trey Smack’s wayward set of kicks at OTAs last week was cause for heartburn, the rookie’s performance at the first day of Green Bay Packers minicamp on Tuesday was the equivalent of a big bottle of Tums Smoothies.

After making only 5-of-9 field-goal attempts during the second week of OTAs last Wednesday, Smack made 7-of-8 attempts on Tuesday. The kicks ranged from a 33-yard extra point to a 58-yarder. The lone miss was from 40 yards.

Smack’s even-keeled approach served him well.

“Just no reaction every single day,” he said afterward. “It’s like, OK, I had a good day today. Last week, I had a bad day. It’s still the same reaction.”

Last week, two of Smack’s misses were the equivalent of pulling a tee shot into the woods. There was no reason to smack the panic button, though.

“We’re still in the early stages,” coach Matt LaFleur said before practice. “Obviously, all you see is the results, but I think it’s just the whole operation. They’re all getting used to each other in regards to the placement of the ball, how we’re handling it. I think it’s just one of those days.”

Wednesday was a better day. Six of the seven makes seemed to be pretty close to dead center. That included the 58-yard bomb, which had the help of a slight breeze but was good with plenty of distance to spare.

“Practice is practice,” Smack said. “It’s where you’re supposed to mess up. It’s where you’re supposed to fix things.”

Smack was the last of Green Bay’s six draft picks, but none of them are under a bigger microscope.

The Packers traded their two seventh-round picks to select Smack in the sixth round, making him the first kicker off the board. The Packers then released veteran Brandon McManus. While Lucas Havrisik remains on the roster, it’s clear who the Packers want to win the job.

The importance of a good kicker can hardly be overstated. The Packers might have beaten the Bears in the wild-card playoffs had McManus not missed two field goals and an extra point in the 31-27 loss.

So, this isn’t a young kicker joining a young, growing team. This is a young kicker joining a team that has qualified for the playoffs each of the last three seasons and is looking to finally get back to the Super Bowl.

Because of the expectations, Smack’s four-miss day at OTAs might have been troubling, especially after having to stew on it for a week. From that perspective, his bounce-back performance was a good sign.

“Yeah, it’s just doing your job,” Smack said of the pressure to meet the expectations of his teammates. “How I did my job at Florida and how can I do my job here.”

Smack’s mindset is simple.

“Just look at myself in the mirror and see what I can do better every single day,” he said.

As he’s progressed as a kicker – he was late to the sport before getting a nudge from former NFL standout Matt Prater – he’s gotten better at controlling the emotions.

“You’ve got daily goals for yourself,” Smack said. “If you complete those goals, you complete your day.”

Smack has a lot to learn, and that might mean some growing pains that the team needs him to have overcome before Week 1.

It’s not just Smack. The Packers have an established snapper-holder combo in Matt Orzech and Daniel Whelan. They must adapt to the rookie kicker.

“Everybody likes the ball positioned a little bit differently,” LaFleur said. “That’s something we’re working through right now.”

There’s also the same adjustment to the NFL ball.

“The NFL ball’s a little bit longer than the college ball, so it has a bigger sweet spot,” Smack said. “With the new technology and how we break down our kicking balls, we want those really crappy balls. You don’t want to see any dimples on it. You want it to be smooth so it can travel through the wind better and it’ll come off your foot a lot better. And we want it really inflated, too.”

Added together, the transition, predictably, hasn’t been seamless. Going 7-of-8 was a step in the right direction, though even that’s not good enough given that he wasn’t kicking against a fully live rush. Plus, these are the relatively stress-free days of June. The stakes will be infinitely higher on Sept. 13 at Minnesota and, along with it, the pressure will be ratcheted up.

So, Smack will continue his steady-as-he-goes approach. He spoke as calmly on Wednesday as he did after his poor day at OTAs.

Does he ever allow himself to ride the emotional rollercoaster?

“If anything,” he said, “it’s going to be after we win a game.”

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