Packers Stick With Trey Smack After Two Misses: Week 8 Fantasy Outlook

54 minutes ago

4 min read

Reporting cutoff: October 26, 2026 at 2:16 a.m. Central. Green Bay’s official Week 7 recap, schedule, roster, and reporting from Matt LaFleur’s postgame press conference were checked at that time.

Fantasy scoring note: kicker recommendations use standard kicker scoring because half PPR, full PPR and non PPR settings do not change kicker points.

The Green Bay Packers are not making an immediate change at kicker after Trey Smack missed two field goals in Sunday’s 20-17 loss to the Detroit Lions. Head coach Matt LaFleur backed the rookie after the game, and reporting from his postgame press conference said Smack remains Green Bay’s kicker entering a short Week 8 turnaround.

That decision preserves Smack’s job for Thursday night against Carolina, but it does not erase the fantasy risk. His leg strength and scoring opportunities keep him relevant, while four missed field goals over his past three games make him difficult to trust in standard one-kicker leagues.

Anonymous Green Bay-style kicker attempts a field goal in a rainy night stadium

What happened against Detroit?

Smack’s first miss came after a delay-of-game penalty turned a successful 21-yard attempt into a 26-yard try. He pushed the longer kick right. He later made a 43-yard field goal to tie the game at 17, then missed a 35-yard attempt after Green Bay took over at the Detroit 22 with a chance to move ahead. The official scorebook credited Detroit’s DJ Wonnum with a block on the final attempt.

The Packers never regained possession after the late miss. Detroit drove for the winning 22-yard field goal, ending Green Bay’s three-game winning streak and dropping the Packers to 4-3.

Why Green Bay is staying with Smack

LaFleur’s public message emphasized confidence rather than an open competition. The Packers’ official recap quoted him saying Smack has already shown he can do the job and needs to clear the performance from his mind. With Green Bay hosting Carolina on Thursday, the team also has very little practice time to install a new kicker and holder operation.

Smack’s résumé helps explain the patience. Green Bay selected him in the sixth round of the 2026 draft after he made 53 of 64 field goals at Florida, including a school-record 10 kicks from at least 50 yards. He has also made a 59-yarder as an NFL rookie. The question is not whether he has range; it is whether Green Bay can stabilize his short and intermediate accuracy.

The numbers fantasy managers need

Smack is 11-of-16 on field goals this season, a 68.8 percent conversion rate, with a long of 59 yards. He is also 13-of-15 on extra points. Four of his five field-goal misses have come in the past three games: two against Chicago, none against Dallas and two against Detroit.

The Week 7 line was especially volatile. Smack went 1-of-3 on field goals but converted both extra points. That produced limited fantasy value despite Green Bay reaching Detroit territory repeatedly.

Week 8 fantasy football outlook

Smack is a risky streamer rather than an automatic start against Carolina. The Packers moved the ball well enough to reach the red zone four times in Detroit, but they produced only seven points from those trips. That creates theoretical kicking volume, yet recent accuracy and Green Bay’s willingness to attempt fourth downs lower the floor.

In ordinary one-kicker leagues, fantasy managers should prefer a steadier option with a favorable matchup if one is available. Smack remains defensible in deeper leagues, formats that heavily reward long field goals, or contests where Thursday exposure is useful. He is not a priority waiver claim, and managers do not need to hold him through a bye or sacrifice a higher-upside bench player.

There is also a secondary offensive impact. If LaFleur becomes less willing to attempt medium-range field goals, Jordan Love and Josh Jacobs could receive more fourth-down or red-zone opportunities. That can create extra touchdown chances, but it also increases the risk that productive drives end with no points.

Thursday-night decision checklist

Green Bay hosts Carolina on Thursday, October 29 at 7:15 p.m. Central on Prime Video. Before locking in Smack, fantasy managers should check whether the Packers add another kicker, whether LaFleur or special teams coordinator Cam Achord changes the public plan, and whether weather at Lambeau Field creates an additional accuracy concern.

If no competitor is added and conditions are reasonable, Smack should still handle Green Bay’s field goals and extra points. That role gives him a path to rebound, but his recent misses make him a matchup-dependent option rather than a set-and-forget starter.

Strongest counterargument

The strongest counterargument to dropping Smack is that the late 35 yard attempt was blocked, Green Bay still trusts him, and the short turnaround gives the club little reason to make a rushed change. The risk remains real because four misses in three games can narrow his margin for error. The next checkpoints are Green Bay’s transaction wire, Thursday’s active roster, and the weather and kicking conditions before kickoff.

Bottom line

Smack still has the Packers’ kicking job, but fantasy managers should separate job security from fantasy reliability. Green Bay’s short week favors continuity, while an 11-of-16 field-goal record and four misses in three games justify caution. Treat him as a boom-or-bust Week 8 streamer and monitor any roster move before Thursday’s kickoff.