The Green Bay Packers were arguably the most disappointing team in football last year. And perhaps no one did less with more than Packers’ coach Matt LaFleur.
Green Bay headed into the 2025 season with one of the NFL’s top rosters, then traded for star defensive end Micah Parsons 10 days before the year began. Suddenly, Packer Nation was dreaming of their first Super Bowl appearance since 2010.
Instead, Green Bay went a remarkably unsatisfying 9-8-1 overall and was the NFC’s No. 7 seed for a third consecutive year. The Packers then blew a 21-3 halftime lead in the Wild Card round against Chicago, gave up 25 fourth quarter points and eventually suffered a shocking 31-27 loss to the arch-rival Bears.
“No way you should lose games in this league when you’re up that much,” running back Josh Jacobs said.
Green Bay, which began the year 9-3-1, finished the season with five straight losses. The Packers now enter 2026 with the league’s fourth-longest losing streak.
LaFleur, entering his eighth season, is also the longest-tenured coach in the NFL that hasn’t taken a team to the Super Bowl.
Collapsing late in games was the story of Green Bay’s 2025 campaign.
Green Bay had double digit leads in the final minutes twice against Chicago and also vs. Cleveland and somehow went 0-3 in those games. The Packers’ odds of losing all three contests were 1-in-250,000, yet they somehow did it.
“That (expletive), it’s starting to get damn-near embarrassing,” safety Javon Bullard said.
Rebounding won’t be easy as the Packers were hit hard in free agency and didn’t have a first round draft pick.
Green Bay’s first training camp practice is July 29. Between now and then I will count down the ‘30 Most Important Packers’ heading into the 2026 campaign.
We begin our countdown with rookie kicker Trey Smack, who checks in at No. 30.
No. 30
Trey Smack, PK
Last season: Smack made 18-of-22 field goals (81.8%) and 27 of 28 extra points during his final season at Florida.
Smack made a career-long 56-yard field goal against Long Island on Aug. 30 and kicked two 50-plus yard field goals (53 and 54 yards) in the same game for the first time in his career against Mississippi State on Oct. 18.
Smack kicked a 54-yard field goal against No. 5 Georgia on Nov. 1 to set the Florida record of most 50+ yard field goals made with nine. He then extended his own record by making the 10th 50-plus yard field goal of his career with a 54-yarder against Florida State on Nov. 29.
Career to date: During his last three years at Florida, Smack made 53 of 64 field goals (82.8%) and 100 of 101 extra points. He was also 10 of 13 from beyond 50 yards (76.9%) and 24 of 32 from outside of 40 yards (75.0%).
Smack’s career long was 56 yards.
Outlook: The Packers traded two seventh round draft picks to move into the sixth round and select Smack during April’s draft. Smack was the only kicker taken in this year’s draft.
Just 13 days after selecting Smack, the Packers released incumbent Brandon McManus. That means barring a brutal preseason, Smack will be Green Bay’s kicker in 2026.
The Packers have been looking for a branch of consistency to hold onto at the kicker position since moving on from Mason Crosby after the 2022 season.
Anders Carlson bombed in 2023, then Brayden Narveson flopped at the start of 2024. McManus saved the day with a terrific final 11 games in 2024, but the veteran struggled in 2025 leading to his eventual release.
If Smack wins the job this summer, he’ll be Green Bay’s third rookie kicker to open the year in four seasons. The Packers are crossing their fingers Smack will have more success than Carlson and Narveson did.
“Well, you’ve got to keep trying, right?” Packers general manager Brian Gutekunst said.
