For months, the Broncos’ kicking competition was shrouded in questions.
The release of Brandon McManus in May raised eyebrows — even though his 2022 season saw him rank among the league’s bottom third in field-goal accuracy, even when taking the desperation attempts from beyond 60 yards out of the equation.
The competition between Elliott Fry and Brett Maher ended with Fry’s lower-body muscle injury. And while Maher closed the preseason strongly, his skittish opening left the door open if another kicker became available,
That, of course, happened when Wil Lutz lost the kicking competition in New Orleans.
And now, it seems like the Broncos are doing all right.
The Los Angeles Rams released Maher on Tuesday after he two field-goal attempts and an extra point try in their 24-17 loss to Pittsburgh on Sunday. And McManus is basically on the same level as Lutz; he has a lower field-goal percentage — with one kick being blocked — but is perfect on extra points, while Lutz missed a PAT try in the Week 1 loss to Las Vegas.
Lutz also missed a 55-yard attempt in Week 1.
But since then, Wil Lutz hasn’t missed at all. He’s 12-of-13 on field-goal tries and 12-of-13 on extra points. And two of his successful field-goal attempts were fourth-quarter game-winners from 50 or more yards.
“Like all kickers, they’re a little bit, sometimes, like golfers where they’re going to have a stretch maybe where it’s not hitting the fairway,” Broncos coach Sean Payton said Monday. “That being said, there’s talent. You see that. There’s leg talent, right? Then there’s the stuff between the ears that’s so important.”
And of course, for Payton, there was the advantage of familiarity. Lutz kicked for him in New Orleans from 2016-20 before a core-muscle injury wrecked his 2021 campaign. Lutz stopped a revolving door at kicker with the Saints — and earned Payton’s trust.
“There’s a confidence level and from having experienced it before with him, I was proud to see — not only did he hit it [Sunday], but he also hit it really well,” Payton said.
The game-winning 52-yard blast capped a perfect day for Lutz. Which is exactly what Payton hoped to see when he reunited with him.
Lutz looks all the way back now after a frustrating 2022 and the misfires in Week 1.
“No one wants to be a negative part of a game at any position, right? And I think the hardest part at my position is the mental side, bouncing back from the start that we had,” Lutz said.
“But my goal is to affect every game in a positive way, and I feel like special teams as a whole has done that this year, and I’m just grateful to be part of that.”
And for the Broncos, all’s well that end’s well. McManus continues to flourish in Jacksonville, and his success rate is up from his frustrating 2022. But it looks like the Broncos came out OK, too.
