Packers Cut Brandon McManus After $1M Roster Bonus, Hand Kicker Job to Sixth-Round Rookie Trey Smack

As ESPN's Adam Schefter reported, the Green Bay Packers are releasing veteran kicker Brandon McManus, completing a surprising offseason pivot that began when the club used a sixth-round pick on Florida's Trey Smack in last month's draft. The move is notable not just for its timing — Green Bay paid McManus a $1 million roster bonus in March — but for what it signals about the organization's confidence in a rookie kicker heading into 2026.

McManus wasn't a liability in Green Bay. He connected on 24 of 30 field goals in 2025 (80.0%) and went 32-for-33 on extra points across 14 games, numbers that track closely with his 82.0% career field goal rate over nine seasons with Denver and a stop in Jacksonville. His playoff performance against Chicago — two missed field goals and a missed PAT — likely accelerated the front office's thinking, but cutting him this early, after absorbing a seven-figure roster bonus, is a real statement of intent.

Smack enters the picture as a complete unknown at the NFL level. Sixth-round kickers occasionally stick, but the variance on their early-career performance is enormous. Green Bay hasn't announced a competition, which suggests the coaching staff either has high conviction in Smack or expects to add a veteran challenger before training camp. Either way, the Packers' kicking game is in flux — and flux at that position has direct, quantifiable consequences on game outcomes and totals.

From a prop and team-total perspective, kicker uncertainty is one of the most underpriced variables in early-season NFL betting markets. Books set Green Bay team totals based on offensive efficiency, and they don't meaningfully discount for a rookie kicker's higher miss rate in high-leverage moments. Smack's margin for error inside 50 yards will be scrutinized closely, but it's his performance on longer attempts — where the Packers' offense will sometimes stall in opponent territory — that creates the real exposure. A kicker missing 20–25% of attempts beyond 45 yards in a six-point game is a different equation than the 18% McManus posted career-wide. Watch Packers team totals and kicker points props closely once depth charts solidify; if Smack is confirmed as the Week 1 starter with no veteran competition added, there's a lean toward the under on Green Bay team totals in early-season divisional games where field position and late-drive execution become decisive.