Not only has a fresh coaching regime resulted in an influx of new faces into Carolina this offseason, but it’s also brought along a wave of new feet to the roster as well.
The latest addition to the Panthers’ special team unit was made official late Thursday afternoon when the team announced that they claimed Norwegian utility leg Kaare Vedvik off waivers. The 26-year-old, who spent his most recent stint with the Buffalo Bills, is listed as both a kicker and a punter.
Vedvik was first signed by the Baltimore Ravens in 2018 as an undrafted free agent out of Marshall University, where he averaged 44.0 yards per punt in his senior campaign while converting on 10 of his 16 field goal attempts and 41 of his 42 extra point tries. He’d connect on all four of his field goal attempts for Baltimore in their preseason opener that year and would go on to average 55.5 yards per punt on two boots the preseason after.
After being traded to the Minnesota Vikings for a fifth-round pick on Aug. 11 of 2019, Vedvik was waived and subsequently claimed by the New York Jets on Sept. 1. This is where he’d record his only official NFL stats, a missed extra point and a missed 45-yard field goal attempt in a 17-16 season-opening loss to the Bills. He was, again, waived nine days later.
With usual starter Michael Palardy out for the 2020 season due to a torn ACL and rookie Joseph Charlton, um, failing to impress, this signing brings extra competition to the punting scene and perhaps some versatility to the group. Even with kicker Joey Slye securing starting kicking duties with Graham Gano gone, Vedvik could serve as a big leg on kickoffs and/or long distance field goal tries if needed.