GREEN BAY, Wis. — Brandon McManus wasn’t sure he’d get another chance to play in the NFL, but when the league concluded its investigation into possible violations of its personnel conduct policy last month, the phone call came. He said it was starting to take a toll. ring.
Less than three weeks later, he was at the Green Bay Packers’ practice field, preparing for Sunday’s game against the Houston Texans at Lambeau Field.
McManus signed with the Washington Commanders in the offseason, but in September 2023, two women who worked as flight attendants for the charter airline of his former team, the Jacksonville Jaguars, announced that McManus had signed a contract with the Washington Commanders in the offseason. McManus was released after filing a lawsuit accusing him of flying to London. Sexual assault while traveling. The NFL announced on September 30th that an investigation found that McManus would not face any disciplinary action.
“The last few months have been tough,” McManus said Wednesday. “I’m glad that’s in the past. I was working hard hoping for another opportunity. I’m very grateful to the Green Bay Packers for giving me another chance to come back here and play the game I love.” Thank you very much.”
McManus said Wednesday that the lawsuit was “resolved,” but declined to say whether there was a settlement or whether the civil suit had been dismissed. Florida court records show depositions with the two women are still pending, but attorney Brett Garraway, who is representing McManus, told ESPN in a statement Wednesday. “The matter has been resolved. I look forward to watching him play for the Packers on Sunday.” ”
Attorney Tony Buzbee, who is not named in the lawsuit but said last month that he is representing the women, confirmed to ESPN on Wednesday night that the matter was “resolved” and the terms were confidential. Ta.
Buzbee released a statement on Sept. 30 saying the NFL had not interviewed the women during the investigation. According to league officials, the NFL has repeatedly requested to meet with Buzbee, but has not received a response. The league could reopen the investigation if there is new evidence to consider.
Packers general manager Brian Gutekunst said the team followed the league’s investigation closely and did its own behind-the-scenes work and felt comfortable signing the veteran, who averaged a career 81.4 percent from the field. He said he felt
“I think it’s clear to us that without these charges, he wouldn’t have been able to reach out to us right now,” Gutekunst said Wednesday. “But I think the league did a very thorough investigation, and we relied on that to proceed with our investigation.”
Gutekunst added: “Without going into too many details, we are very happy with this acquisition.”
Gutekunst also said he needed to hear from McManus before signing with the Packers.
“I had a really good conversation with Brandon last night…and with his agent, Drew Rosenhaus, that conversation was a little bit of a conversation last week as these issues get resolved within the league and he gets through other things. “I picked it up,” Gutekunst said. “We wanted to make sure we did our due diligence. Again, we’re really happy with where we are. We’re excited to get him out there.”
McManus spent his first 10 seasons with the Denver Broncos. In his only season with the Jaguars last year, he made 30 of 37 field goals and all 35 of his extra points.
The Packers have struggled in the kicking game since then-rookie sixth-round pick Anders Karlsson started missing field goals and extra points midway through last season. He missed at least one kick (field goal or extra point) in eight of the last 10 regular-season games, plus one in each of the two playoff games.
Brayden Narveson, who was released Wednesday, joined the Packers on waivers the day after final roster cuts at the end of training camp. He missed five field goals in six games, the most of any kicker in the league. In total, he made 12 of 17 field goals.
“With the situation our soccer team is in right now, I think we understand how important these games are,” Gutekunst said. “If we had an opportunity to get a veteran kicker who’s been through these fires and this pressure that our team is going to be going through in the next few weeks, we thought that was important.” And the fact of the matter is, there was was only Brandon. ”
