Tag: Mason Crosby

Packers almost signed K Adam Vinatieri in 2006

The Packers nearly signed Adam Vinatieri in 2006, but the Colts stole him away at the last minute.

The last decade and a half for the Green Bay Packers at the kicker position could have played out much differently.

Following the recent retirement of future Hall of Fame kicker Adam Vinatieri, former Packers executive Andrew Brandt shared a story of how he almost lured Vinatieri to Green Bay as a free agent in 2006.

Brandt, who writes now for Sports Illustrated, was optimistic that Vinatieri would sign with the Packers after visiting Green Bay that spring, but the Indianapolis Colts came in at the last minute and offered a chance to kick in a dome, ruining the potential pairing.

In fact, Brandt said he was “convinced” Vinatieri would sign with the Packers following the visit, but the Colts’ offer to play indoors was too much for the veteran kicker to pass up.

Good decision. Vinatieri went on to play another 14 years with the Colts, cementing his legacy as one of the greatest kickers of all time.

The Packers, meanwhile, got a poor season from Dave Rayner in 2006 (74.3 percent on field goal attempts) and a year later drafted Mason Crosby in the sixth round of the 2007 draft.

Crosby, now 36, remains the Packers kicker and is going into his 15th season in Green Bay. He is the franchise’s all-time leader in points scored, field goals made and extra points made. He has also appeared in 224 straight games, second only in franchise history to Brett Favre.

Who knows how long Vinatieri would have lasted in Green Bay. And signing him in 2006 would have meant losing out on Crosby a year later. In the long run, it looks like everything turned out right for both Vinatieri and the Packers.

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How Packers restructured Mason Crosby’s contract

The Packers cleared $1.34 million in cap space by using a unique restructure mechanism on Mason Crosby’s contract.

The Green Bay Packers created $1.34 million in cap space by completing a unique restructure of kicker Mason Crosby’s contract.

Bill Huber of Sports Illustrated has the details. According to Huber, the Packers not only turned $1.675 million of Crosby’s base salary and roster bonus this year into a signing bonus, but the restructure also added three voidable years to the contract, allowing the Packers to prorate the signing bonus over the full five years, instead of just the two years left on Crosby’s deal.

The restructure mechanism created a bigger chunk of cap space now in return for a dead cap hit later.

Crosby’s cap hit in 2021 dropped to $3,160,000 and rose to $4,735,000 in 2022. For a year-by-year look at his new deal, check out Over the Cap.

The void years start in 2023 when Crosby is no longer on the roster and a dead cap hit of $1,005,000 (or the final three years of the prorated signing bonus) will be due on the Packers’ cap.

Before the restructure, Crosby was due a roster bonus of $1.25 million last Friday. His base salary dropped to the league minimum ($1,075,000) for a player with 10 accrued seasons.

The restructured deal means little for Crosby and his money. He will receive the same amount, but the money is just moved around the salary cap for accounting purposes. This is not a pay cut.

The NFL’s new television deal is expected to hit the salary cap in 2023, making it easier for teams like the Packers to tack on void years and take dead cap hits that year.

Crosby, who turns 37 in September, made all 16 of his field goal attempts last season. With this new restructure, the Packers are committing to him as the team’s kicker for at least the next two seasons.

Safety Adrian Amos completed a similar type of restructuring on his deal to help create more immediate cap space.

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Packers free cap space by adding void years to contracts of Mason Crosby, Adrian Amos

The Packers keep manipulating the salary cap, this time with void years tacked onto the deals of Adrian Amos and Mason Crosby.

The Green Bay Packers created cap space by converting roster bonuses and adding void years to the contracts of kicker Mason Crosby and Adrian Amos.

The moves were first reported by Ollie Murry and confirmed by several beat reporters, including Tom Silverstein of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel and Bill Huber of Sports Illustrated.

Converting money to signing bonuses and adding three void years helped the Packers lower the cap hits of Crosby and Amos in 2021. Altogether, the restructures for Crosby and Amos created nearly $6 million in cap space, helping the Packers re-sign Kevin King to a one-year deal.

Both Crosby and Amos had two years left on their original deals. Under the new structure of the deals, they both will leave dead money on the cap in 2023 when the void years begin. A future extension might make sense for Amos, who is still 28 years old and a vital member of the Packers defense. Crosby is 37 and might only have 1-2 more years left in the NFL.

Teams have used void years on contracts to help spread out the proration of converted signing bonuses and create bigger cap reductions in 2021. While the proration creates more cap space this year, it will create dead money cap hits in a future season.

The Packers have nearly exhausted their cap-reduction mechanisms. The team has restructured the contract of every veteran player with a roster bonus, expect for quarterback Aaron Rodgers.

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Mason Crosby nails another clutch kick for Packers

The 37-year-old kicker nailed a 51-yard field goal late in the Packers’ win over the Panthers.

A 37-year-old kicker hitting a 57-yard field goal late in the fourth quarter of a game would usually be a tough accomplishment to top, but Green Bay Packers kicker Mason Crosby needed only six days to do something as impressive or more.

With the Packers up 21-13 over the Carolina Panthers and under four minutes to go on Saturday night at Lambeau Field, coach Matt LaFleur called on Crosby to make a 51-yard field goal to extend his team’s lead to 11 points, and the veteran kicker hit it with room to spare.

A week earlier, Crosby made a 57-yarder indoors at Ford Field to help the Packers’ escape with a win over the Detroit Lions. This time around, Crosby had to make another long field goal in a clutch situation but the setting was much different: outdoors, during a December night game at Lambeau Field.

The kick was accurate and had plenty of distance. It wasn’t bitterly cold in Green Bay on Saturday night, but Crosby’s kick likely would have been good from at least 55 yards or more.

With two games to go, Crosby remains perfect, having made all 16 of his field goal attempts in 2020. Four of his 16 makes have been from 50 yards or longer. He hit from 52 in New Orleans, 53 in San Franciso and 57 in Detroit, all indoors or in warm climates.

Saturday’s make was from 51 inside a comfortable but cold Lambeau Field, where winds are known to swirl inside the bowl and kicking becomes increasingly difficult as the temps drop.

The successful try must give LaFleur and the Packers even more confidence that Crosby can make a big kick in a big spot in unpredictable conditions in Green Bay, especially if the Packers going to be playing at least one home game in the postseason.

Over the last two seasons, Crosby has made 37 of 39 field goal attempts and 5 of 6 attempts of at least 50 yards. He was 9-for-10 in December last year and now 3-for-3 over three December games in 2020.

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Packers K Mason Crosby cost Lions KR Jamal Agnew some cash

Getting tackled by a kicker is a no-no in Detroit.

Mason Crosby makes his money kicking field goals, like the clutch 57-yarder he hit in the fourth quarter of Sunday’s win over the Detroit Lions.

The Green Bay Packers kicker is also costing one returner some cash.

According to Carlos Monarrez of the Detroit Free Press, Lions kickoff returner Jamal Agnew is going to be down a few bucks after Crosby tackled him at the end of a 71-yard kickoff return on Sunday at Ford Field.

“I wish we could’ve finished it. Ag will have to put a couple dollars in the swear jar this week. We don’t get tackled by kickers and punters here. He’ll have to pony up there,” Lions special teams coach Brayden Coombs told Monarrez.

After Crosby’s long field goal, Agnew fielded the ensuing kickoff four yards deep in the end zone, broke into the clear and just needed to beat the Packers kicker to score the touchdown. With Agnew pinned to the sideline and Josh Jackson chasing in pursuit, Crosby confidently dove for the tackle and cut him down out of bounds, preventing the score.

The 71-yard kickoff return was the longest of the season for the Lions, but the offense came on the field and eventually settled for a field goal.

Crosby’s tackle – and Agnew’s inability to avoid the tackle – saved four points for the Packers.

Crosby, now 36, is no stranger to making tackles. He has 27 in his 14-year career, including at least one in 12 of his 14 seasons. His tackle of Agnew on Sunday was the first tackle of his 2020 season.

The Packers know their kicker can tackle. The punter is a different story.

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Packers K Mason Crosby dealing with two new injuries

Packers K Mason Crosby has calf and back injuries and wasn’t available for Wednesday’s walk-through practice.

An injury at kicker can be a tricky thing in the age of COVID-19. Adding a player, at any position, is a potentially long process for NFL teams.

The Green Bay Packers are currently dealing with a situation involving kicker Mason Crosby, who has two new injuries coming out of the team’s win in Houston last Sunday. The veteran kicker has a left calf injury and a back injury, according to the injury report, and he wasn’t available for Wednesday’s walk-through practice.

The Packers don’t have a backup kicker on the 53-man roster or the practice squad, so if Crosby can’t go this week, the team would need to make an outside addition and have the player ready by Sunday or just not have a traditional kicker against the Minnesota Vikings.

Crosby didn’t attempt a field goal but did kick five extra points and handle kickoff duties against the Texans. It’s unclear when the injuries happened.

The Packers also listed long snapper Hunter Bradley on Wednesday’s injury report with a groin injury. Like Crosby, he’s the only long snapper on the roster or practice squad, although his injury appears to be less significant, and teams often have position players who could snap in a pinch.

Crosby, who entered the league in 2007 and is now 36 years old, has never missed a game due to injury. He has connected on all nine of his field goals this season, including five over 40 yards.

The Packers have had several kickers in for tryouts and visits over the first seven weeks of the season, so GM Brian Gutekunst would likely have several options should he need to make a move this week.

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Golfweek Skills Challenge: NFL kickers face off in putting challenge

Golfweek invited four professional football players to take part in the first-ever Golfweek Skills Challenge.

Golfweek invited four professional football players to take part in the first-ever Golfweek Skills Challenge.

Host Averee Dovsek guides Robbie Gould of the San Francisco 49ers, Mason Crosby of the Green Bay Packers, Brandon McManus of the Denver Broncos and Jake Elliott of the Philadelphia Eagles through each battle.

These kickers have faced off in driving and chipping. The final event in this challenge is putting. Each player will choose a distance and then has the option of hitting the regulation-size hole or a smaller hole. Each player gets four putts to put points on the board. The distance from the hole equals how many points they earn. Making the putt in the smaller hole doubles the points.

Watch the video here:

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First challenge: Driving.

The rules are easy, as the longest tee shot takes the prize in this category. Each player got three chances to hit the long ball, with the longest drive worth 16 points, second longest worth 12, third good for 8 points and last place getting four points.

Second challenge: Chipping.

Each player gets five chances to score points on the Chippo board. The two small holes are worth five points, the larger holes three points and simply hitting the board is worth oine point. If you can bounce it off the front mat and then get it into a hole, that’s worth double points.

Golfweek Skills Challenge: Which NFL kicker is the best chipper?

These NFL kickers have all faced chip-shot field goal attempts during their careers. But how are they chipping a golf ball?

Golfweek invited four professional football players to take part in the first ever Golfweek Skills Challenge.

Host Averee Dovsek guides Robbie Gould of the San Francisco 49ers, Mason Crosby of the Green Bay Packers, Brandon McManus of the Denver Broncos and Jake Elliott of the Philadelphia Eagles through each battle.

These kickers have all faced chip-shot field goal attempts during their careers. But how are they chipping a golf ball?

Round 2 of the competition shows us the answer.

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First challenge: Driving.

The rules are easy, as the longest tee shot takes the prize in this category. Each player got three chances to hit the long ball, with the longest drive worth 16 points, second longest worth 12, third good for 8 points and last place getting four points.

Still to come: Putting.

Golfweek Skills Challenge: Four NFL kickers face off in long-drive competition

Golfweek invited four professional football players to take part in the first ever Golfweek Skills Challenge. First up: Driving.

Golfweek invited four professional football players to take part in the first ever Golfweek Skills Challenge.

Robbie Gould of the San Francisco 49ers, Mason Crosby of the Green Bay Packers, Brandon McManus of the Denver Broncos and Jake Elliott of the Philadelphia Eagles each battled it out driving, chipping and putting against one another.

Host Averee Dovsek guided the four through the challenge.

Up first: Driving.

The rules are easy, as the longest tee shot takes the prize in this category. Each player got three chances to hit the long ball, with the longest drive worth 16 points, second longest worth 12, third good for 8 points and last place getting four points.

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Still to come: Chipping and putting.

Packers K Mason Crosby activated from reserve/COVID-19 list

Packers K Mason Crosby came off the reserve/COVID-19 list in time to practice with the team on Saturday.

The Green Bay Packers have their veteran kicker available for the first practice of training camp in 2020.

Mason Crosby was activated from the reserve/COVID-19 list and is on the field practicing with the team on Saturday morning, according to Ryan Wood of PackersNews.com.

The Packers originally placed Crosby, the team’s only kicker, on the reserve list on July 30.

Crosby, who turns 36 in September, signed a three-year deal to return to the Packers this offseason. He connected on 22 of 24 field goals and 40 of 41 extra points and tied the team’s all-time field goal percentage record for a single season in 2019.

The four others placed on the reserve/COVID-19 list – tight end Jace Sternberger, long snapper Hunter Bradley, outside linebacker Greg Roberts and defensive lineman Treyvon Hester – remain on the list as of Saturday. Sternberger and Hester were present at practice, according to reporters.