Trey Smack. Come on.
If that's not a player born to kick, I don't know who is. The Green Bay Packers clearly agree, as they traded up to the back end of the sixth round to select the Florida kicker.
And, true to his name, Smack has a big leg and is at his best when booting kicks from long range.
"Smack has a strong leg and can deliver beyond 50 yards at a high rate without having to drive balls with a lower trajectory. His repeatable process and consistent placement give him an above-average chance of making it in the league," writes Lance Zierlein of NFL.com.
Sixth-rounder Trey Smack has a real opportunity to make the Packers' roster
All joking aside, this is a notable move for the Packers. Brandon McManus is under fire after a brutal second season in Green Bay, made worse by missing three kicks in the playoff loss to Chicago.
The Packers have already paid McManus a $1 million roster bonus, which seemed to hint that the job was still his, but Smack's arrival changes that. Sure, it's a Day 3 dart throw, but Green Bay traded up to get him, giving away both of their seventh-round selections.
It's fitting that Smack is far better on long-range kicks than from closer in. Last season, he made just four of six field goals (66.6 percent) from 30-39 yards but converted 10 of 12 (83.3 percent) on kicks of 40-plus yards. That includes four of five from 50-plus.
According to the Shrine Bowl Director of Football Ops, Eric Galko, Smack is a two-time Groza semifinalist and was one of just three FBS kickers to make five field goals beyond 50 yards last season. Galko also notes that Smack nailed (smacked?) a 57-yarder at the Shrine Bowl.
Like we said, he's called Trey Smack. What did you expect?!
Clearly, the rookie will need to improve his consistency to make it work at the NFL level, especially on the short-yardage attempts. Mistakes in that must-have range doomed Anders Carlson during his time in Green Bay. He also had a big leg.
McManus is officially on notice. The Packers traded up to provide real competition for the veteran. If Smack can live up to his all-timer of a name, McManus is in serious trouble.
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