Green Bay Packers announce release of kicker JJ Molson

Molson was on the Packers’ practice squad for all of 2021.

On Friday, the Green Bay Packers announced that they have released kicker JJ Molson, bringing their 90-man roster numbers back down to 89. This is the second special teams-related move this week after the team signed long snapper Jack Coco, who had previously been with the team during rookie minicamp on a tryout, and waived offensive lineman Jahmir Johnson, who had taken a pre-draft visit with the team and was signed as an undrafted free agent, with an injury designation.

Molson was a 2020 college free agent who had a stint with the Los Angeles Chargers following his career at UCLA. The placekicker and kickoff man was signed late in the 2020 season to the Packers’ practice squad and spent all of 2021 with Green Bay. Molson frequently was given “protected” status on the Packers’ practice squad last season, seemingly as injury/Covid insurance for Mason Crosby.

Molson hardly saw playing time, even in the 2021 preseason. In the end, he made one extra point and six kickoffs (with one touchback) over his time in Green Bay. With his release, the Packers now have two kickers in camp, Crosby and Dominik Eberle. Eberle was signed by the team in February and has experience with new special teams coordinator Rich Bisaccia from his time with the Las Vegas Raiders.

If one is to make predictions, it’d be a safe bet to say Crosby is the team’s 2022 starter and that Eberle will assume the role as “the protected practice squad player who is there in case Crosby gets hurt or sick” this year. Now that the Packers have a little bit of cap space opened up from the Jaire Alexander extension, it will be interesting to see if they dip their toes in the wide receiver market, as NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport said they could last week. There was no corresponding roster move to come with Molson’s release, which means they simply have an extra roster spot at the moment.