Nine and the sixteenth.
There are 6:21 seconds remaining in the game.
On January 20, Anders Carlson trotted out for a 41-yard field goal, giving the Green Bay Packers a 21-17 lead over the San Francisco 49ers in the NFC divisional playoffs.
The rain that caused problems earlier in the match had cleared up. The wind played no part.
Carlson still missed the kick with a wide left.
The rest is known to you. In a 24-21 loss to their bitter rival 49ers, San Francisco scored the game’s first touchdown, Packers quarterback Jordan Love was intercepted, and Green Bay’s hopes of winning the Super Bowl were dashed.
Everyone who works at 1265 Lombardi Ave. should have a permanent memory of what transpired in Santa Clara nine months ago. But as of right now, it doesn’t seem to be the case.
With rookie kicker Brayden Narveson ranking 31st in the NFL in field goal percentage (70.6%) among kickers who have played in at least three games, the Packers are still struggling with their kicking situation. The only player worse (66.7%) is New York Jets’ Greg Zuerlein.
With five missed field goals, Narveson leads the league. He is currently 12-of-17 overall. In four of Green Bay’s six games, Narveson has missed field goals; he went 0 for 2 in the afternoon’s 31-29 loss to Minnesota last month.
The Packers appear committed to the rookie for the time being, anyway. The reason behind this is the question.
After Sunday’s 34-13 victory over Arizona, in which Narveson missed a field goal from 44 yards out, Green Bay coach Matt LaFleur was questioned about his level of confidence in his kicker.
Yes, without a doubt, LaFleur replied. We did it afterwards, after all. In response, he delivered a kick.
As of right now, seven kickers have never missed a field goal, including Will Reichard of Minnesota and Jake Bates of Detroit, who are both in the NFC North. In addition, fifteen kickers have completed at least ninety percent of their attempts.
Outside of Green Bay, kickers have made 85.6% of their field goals thus far, which is 15.0% higher than Narveson’s percentage.
The previous year, Carlson, who was fired this summer, made 81.8% of his field goals, which is 10.2% higher than Narveson’s current clip.
To his credit, Narveson has scored each of the 16 bonus points. On the whole, though, kickers have scored 387 out of 399 extra points this year, or 97.0% of the total.
Green Bay would have the second-worst field goal percentage since 1988 with Narveson’s current stat. The only season worse than that was 2012, when Mason Crosby had a terrible season and only made 63.6% of his field goals.
Nonetheless, Crosby was retained by Green Bay because of his impressive record of five previous seasons. Crosby also made it worthwhile, kicking it up a notch for ten more years.
Narveson doesn’t have any accrued house credit. Furthermore, nothing in his history suggests that he will ever convert 90.0% of his field goals, something that currently only half of the league achieves.
Between 2019 and 2023, Narveson attended three different universities, where he only made 71 of 91 field goals (78.0%). Narveson finished 18 out of 23 (2023) at North Carolina State (78.3%).
Green Bay should be even more concerned about Narveson’s struggles because they have occurred even in ideal circumstances.
For Green Bay’s first five games, the weather was ideal. There was a little rain during Sunday’s game against Arizona, but it quickly dissipated when Narveson missed a 44-yard field goal with just minutes remaining in the third quarter.
Anyone living in Wisconsin is aware that things only get worse from here.
What will Narveson do next?
When asked on Monday when Narveson’s weekly absences would start to cause him problems, LaFleur responded, “We’ll see.” We’ll again take each day as it comes.
Narveson ought to be out of days by now. And Green Bay ought to be looking into every alternative.
The previous season, the Packers discovered the devastating power of a subpar kicker.
History seems destined to repeat itself right now.
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