After moving on from Maurice Drayton in 2021, the Green Bay Packers made a splash by hiring Las Vegas Raiders interim head coach Rich Bisaccia to lead special teams.
That hiring immediately paid off, as after Green Bay lost in the 2022 NFC Divisional Round to the San Francisco 49ers due in part to major special teams mistakes, the Packers’ special teams unit took a major step forward.
Keisean Nixon was awarded with a First-Team All-Pro selection in 2022-23 as a kick returner after leading the NFL in return yards. Green Bay improved on blocking mistakes and coverage mistakes.
Something changed this season though. Through the first four games of the 2023-24 season, the Packers’ special teams unit had racked up 10 penalties, which was by far the most in the NFL through four games. Those 10 penalties accounted for a loss of 96 yards.
Penalties at any level hurt teams, but when a team is able to start with the ball 10-15 yards ahead of where the play ends, it becomes a major problem for a defense looking to make a stop. On the other hand, giving your offense the ball backed up into your own red zone severely limits the team’s ability to score points as a whole.
That comes with the philosophy of Bisaccia, though. The former Raiders coach is known for his hard, old-fashioned style, which can account for the over-aggressiveness and penalties as a result. The penalties could also be a result of the inexperience and youth of the team. Green Bay often struggles to put players on the team who specialize in special teams. With Bisaccia on the coaching staff, that seemed to change as players like Nixon, Dallin Leavitt and Zayne Anderson became household names through special teams.
Another major change that Green Bay featured this season was moving on from the franchise’s all-time leading scorer in Mason Crosby.
Crosby, who had made numerous huge kicks in his tenure, was losing power in his kicks, and the team as whole decided it was best to move on. That in turn led the team to draft Auburn kicker Anders Carlson, with whom Bisaccia had familiarity after coaching his brother Daniel in Las Vegas. Even though Anders Carlson was just a 71.8% kicker in college, Gutekunst and his staff saw enough out of him to make him the next guy in Green Bay.
“He was a kicker that Rich has extensive experience with. You know, he had his brother and knew him for quite a while,” said Gutekunst, after Carlson was drafted. “We felt really good about where he was headed, and again, I think the relationship there that Rich has with him is a positive factor for us picking him.”
As has been the philosophy since Gutekunst and LaFleur took over in Green Bay, personal relationships seem to trump prior experience, and that appears to be the case with Carlson. In Carlson’s rookie year, he converted 34 of 39 extra points and 27 field goals on 33 attempts. While those numbers aren’t terrible from a rookie kicker, the inconsistency from Carlson is what was the most troubling this season. Through Green Bay’s last 11 games of the season, Carlson missed a field goal or an extra point in nine of them. The most troubling came in Green Bay’s divisional round matchup against the San Francisco 49ers.
With Green Bay up 21-17, Carlson was asked to enter the game on fourth down and convert a field goal to put the team up seven points. The kick missed, and the 49ers took advantage of the situation, scoring on their next drive. While it is easy to say that missing the kick was the reason that Green Bay lost, it really never comes down to one play. With that being said though, kicking is a part of the game, and teams need to take advantage of every opportunity to put points on the board.
“I don’t think the kicks have been the same miss every time. So each kick is different, and as coach has talked about, each kick is its own story,” said Carlson, regarding his inconsistency in games. “I think that there is a lot to learn, and as for me, it’s tough to see these guys, because I know how much work they put in, and I just want to put them in the best position possible.”
Due to Carlson’s inconsistencies and missing in big spots, Green Bay signed Georgia free agent Jake Podlesny after the season.
That signals that even though the team spent draft capital on Carlson, it needs to see more out of him come next season. With Podlesny in town, that should be a kick in the butt for Carlson. Even Crosby had struggles in his career, and Green Bay was forced to to bring in competition. That certainly moved him to figure things out and become a better kicker.
Now Carlson is not Crosby, but could a similar effect happen? Maybe. When competition is involved, it has to signal that a job is on the line. That may be just what the young kicker needs to improve his play.
If there is something positive to take from the special teams this season, it is the continued prolific play from Nixon in the return game. Nixon was once again named to the NFL’s First All-Pro team as a kick returner. He once again led the league in return yardage, which has only helped Jordan Love and the offense.
For the Green Bay’s offense to keep developing and improving, Nixon needs to remain a Packer and remain the kick returner to put the offense in the best spot possible.
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