From keeper to kicker: Meet Packers' Irish import who just made his whirlwind NFL debut

New York Times

9 hours ago

GREEN BAY, Wis. — Kicker Mark McNamee had never played in an American football game before Saturday night.
At the time of his first kickoff early in the second quarter of the Green Bay Packers' preseason opener against the New York Jets, McNamee had been in Green Bay for only about 21 hours.
The Packers signed the Irishman shortly before training camp started, but it took more than two weeks for him to arrive in Green Bay while he waited for a visa. The team even hired an immigration lawyer to assist in the process.
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The 6-foot-4 25-year-old briefly appeared in the Canadian Football League earlier this year, but his background is in Gaelic football, a sport combining basketball, rugby and soccer. He played as a goalkeeper for a team in Dublin and said that though kicking a ball is kicking a ball, there are differences between his old job and his new one.
'Gaelic football is round, so that's the biggest difference,' McNamee said. 'The sweet spot on the ball is lower to the ground, so the first thing I had to learn was just raising up the swing plane a little bit, and then the next thing is probably the trajectory of the ball you're kicking.'
In Gaelic football, players can score points by kicking the ball into a soccer-style goal (3 points) or through the uprights above it (1 point). In American football, the trajectory on all kicks is elevated.
McNamee participated in the NFL Scouting Combine in Indianapolis and then a pro day for International Player Pathway program players. The Packers formerly designated outside linebacker Kenneth Odumegwu (Nigeria) and kicker Alex Hale (Australia) as their IPP players, and now McNamee holds the spot essentially given to a 17th practice squad player.
After making his NFL debut, which consisted of three kickoffs, McNamee was seen after the game on the grass of an empty Lambeau Field on a video call with family members back in Ireland.
'I had to get a chat in with them real quick,' McNamee said. 'They're delighted, as well, obviously. It's been an incredible year really for my family, friends, my girlfriend, everybody. It's been great, so to actually get here, put the jersey on, despite the result (a 30-10 Packers loss), is special for everybody.'
How do you from growing up in 🇮🇪 playing Gaelic Football to the NFL?
An unlikely journey but @MarkMcnamee has accomplished just that by playing with the @packers last night.
Follow the (lengthy!)thread below to learn more about his journey.
The ups and downs. (Video thread) pic.twitter.com/f9199uH3wc
— Tadhg Leader (@TadhgLeader) August 10, 2025
McNamee has yet to participate in an open practice, so the Packers have done only live kicking every other session since veteran Brandon McManus kicks every other practice. McNamee will now rotate with McManus and perhaps get a chance to show off a leg he says can hit field goals from around 60 yards away.
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'The longer you stay around, you come up with a first that you didn't ever have before,' veteran special teams coordinator Rich Bisaccia said of coaching someone making their American football debut. 'He had a pretty good combine. He was in the top five guys we had graded, some of the international players that had been over there in the pathway program, and the communication back and forth has mostly been with (assistant special teams coach) Byron (Storer) and (executive vice president/director of football operations) Russ (Ball).
'For just getting off the plane and going out there and trying to kick left and right, I thought he did a good job. He's got a good leg. He's a mature guy. He handled the ambiance pretty good, so we'll see what the future brings. But field-goal-wise, we'll hopefully get him going here a little bit. He has to learn when to start and what the take-off looks like, but it was good to have him out there. Plus, he kept kicks off of our guy (McManus), so that was the big thing.'
Coach Matt LaFleur said Sunday safety Zayne Anderson 'will miss some time but nothing long-term' after the Packers' reserve safety suffered a knee injury Saturday against the Jets. With 2024 second-round pick Javon Bullard primarily playing the nickel, Anderson has served as the team's No. 3 safety behind Xavier McKinney and Evan Williams. McKinney is also nursing a calf injury and likely won't practice for the near future — he said he'll be ready for Week 1 — so that means one of three things: Bullard slides back to safety, 2024 fifth-round pick Kitan Oladapo gets a turn or camp standout and 2024 UDFA Omar Brown plays with the starters.
LaFleur said Bullard will practice at nickel and safety, but the Packers 'certainly don't want to get too far away from the nickel position' with Bullard. Here's defensive backs coach Ryan Downard on Oladapo and Brown, who might be fighting for one spot on the 53-man roster.
On Oladapo: 'KT is obviously a big safety who can really run,' Downard said. 'You see when he turns it on, he can really go. He's done a good job with his communication. … He's a very smart individual, smart football player, has good instincts. … This will be a good opportunity for him to get more reps, and the more, the better for his development.'
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On Brown: 'Obviously the Family Night was a great performance by him (three interceptions in one practice),' Downard said. 'He did a great job capitalizing on the ball-in-the-air opps. He's gotten better as we go. Each day, he just keeps getting better and better, and I knew that was going to be the case with him arriving when he did. All these training camp reps for him are so valuable, so (it's) just a matter of consistency and how many days can you string together where you're doing your job and plussing out on the grade sheet?'
The plan entering the preseason, LaFleur said, was to play starters in the opener against the Jets, rest them Saturday against the Indianapolis Colts after Thursday's joint practice in Indianapolis and give the starters work in both the joint practice against the Seattle Seahawks the next week and in the exhibition finale against Seattle.
That plan is subject to change, especially if LaFleur isn't satisfied with the starters after joint practice against the Colts.
'I just want to see improvement out there on the practice field,' LaFleur said. 'I want to see how we compete against one another and the work we put in. If we feel good about it, then potentially not (playing starters Saturday). But if we don't feel great about it, and we feel like we need the work, then we'll go do that.'
The Packers will conduct a practice closed to the public but open to reporters Monday morning before opening Tuesday morning's practice to the public. The team flies Wednesday to Indianapolis before Thursday's joint practice, which is slated to start at 1:50 p.m. CT instead of the usual 10:30 a.m. CT start time in Green Bay.
The Packers' second preseason game kicks off at noon CT on Saturday from Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis.
(Photo of Mark McNamee: Mike Roemer / Associated Press)
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