Carlson’s Hot Streak Continues: 49ers Kicker Still…
Two notable kickers competed for the Green Bay Packers’ placekicking job this summer: 2023 draft pick Anders Carlson and 2024 free-agent signing Greg Joseph. When both were cut in favor of Brayden Narveson, who was eventually replaced by Brandon McManus, Joseph was the first to find work. Joseph was signed by the New York Giants in late September, where he’s connected on 9 of 12 field goals but is only 3 of 6 beyond 39 yards.
Carlson was added to a regular season roster later, signing with the San Francisco 49ers’ practice squad in Week 7 after injuries to starter Jake Moody and replacement Matthew Wright forced Carlson into the lineup quickly. While the 49ers did lose against the Kansas City Chiefs in Carlson’s first game of the 2024 regular season, he went a perfect 2 of 2, including hitting a 55-yarder.
Against the Dallas Cowboys on Sunday, Carlson went 3 of 3, including another 50-yarder. On the year, he’s a perfect 5 of 5 on field goals and 3 of 4 on extra points, missing one against the Chiefs.
Last year, Carlson was arguably a bottom-three kicker in the league due to his inconsistency. Through October in his rookie year, the former sixth-round pick was 9 of 10 on field goals and 13 of 13 on extra points. From that point on, though, he was just 16 of 23 (69.6 percent) on field goals and 28-34 (82 percent) on extra point attempts through the postseason.
Maybe this is just another example of Carlson starting the season off hot and eventually cooling down, but he’s, at the very least, helped the 49ers out in a pinch. Currently, San Francisco is 4-4, which is a good enough record to tie for the lead in the NFC West. Even if Carlson is moved on from after Moody is healthy, expect to hear that Carlson found work elsewhere in the league, based on how he’s performing right now.
