Green Bay Packers: Matt LaFleur Has 1 Harsh Piece of Advice for Anders Carlson After Missed Field Goal

The Green Bay Packers‘ improbable playoff run came to a frustrating end on Saturday night. Despite leading 21-14 in the fourth quarter, and despite the fact that a Kyle Shanahan team had never come back from a deficit of seven points or more in the fourth quarter of any game (0-30 going into the divisional round), the Packers failed in all three phases of the game and wound up losing 24-21.

Indeed, there were plenty of mistakes made by players in every phase of the game. Jordan Love threw two interceptions in the fourth quarter, including the one that sealed the win for San Francisco. The Green Bay defense dropped not one, but two interceptions, one of which Darnell Savage should have been able to return for a touchdown.

While all of these players faced deserved criticism during and after the game, there was one player who seemed to get more vitriol spewed his way than any of the others: rookie kicker Anders Carlson. The 2023 sixth round draft pick missed a 41-yard field goal during the game, much to the dismay of fans and coaches alike.

The miss was Carlson’s first on kicks between 41 and 49 yards. However, it was also his 10th missed kick in the last 12 games (playoff games included). After the game, head coach Matt LaFleur shared a harsh piece of advice for Carlson with the media.

Matt LaFleur Says Green Bay Packers Kicker Anders Carlson Needs to Find a Way to Be Consistent

After the game, head coach Matt LaFleur said he did not know what they can do to fix Carlson’s misses. “If we had an answer, we would have fixed it, he said.”

LaFleur also had a choice message for Carlson that he shared with reporters:

“Certainly, got to work on the consistency. We’ve seen him do it. We know what he’s capable of. You’ve got to be consistent to last in this league.”

During the broadcast, LaFleur admitted that whenever Carlson takes the field to kick a field goal, all he can do is pray that it goes in. Those is not exactly encouraging words from the head coach.

What Will the Green Bay Packers Do with Anders Carlson?

This season, Carlson made 81.8% of his field goal attempts while making just 87.2% of his extra points. There is no way around it: those are not good numbers.

That being said, the Packers should be used to having a below-average kicker. Franchise all-time leading scorer and fan-favorite Mason Crosby finished seven of his 16 years in Green Bay with a field goal percentage below the league average:

Mason Crosby FG%/NFL avg
07-79.5%/82.8%
08-79.4%/84.5%
09-75%/81.3%
10-78.6%/82.4%
11-85.7%/82.9%
12-63.6%/83.9%
13-89.2%/86.5%
14-81.8%/84%
15-85.7%/84.5%
16-86.7%/84.2%
17-78.9%/84.3%
18-81.1%/84.7%
19-91.7%/81.6%
20-100%/84.6%
21-73.5%/85.1%
22-86.2%/85%

7/16 years above avg

— Robin Adams (@theotherRobin19) August 19, 2023

Of course, the fact that Crosby was not as good as fans may choose to remember is not a reason for the Packers to be complacent with Carlson. The fact of the matter is that as a sixth round pick, he is both cheap and expendable.

That being said, he was also a draft pick. The Packers would be foolish to cut ties with him after just one season. However, they would also be foolish to just hand him the job again in 2024.

Green Bay will likely bring in another veteran kicker (or two) to OTA’s and training camp and make Carlson earn the job. Competition can bring out the best in a player, and hopefully it will for Carlson.

If he cannot improve, Green Bay will have to try again (but hopefully not in the draft).

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