Packers Add Potential Golf Partner for Crosby

During his final season at Oklahoma, Gabe Brkic tied for the national lead with five field goals of 50-plus yards.

GREEN BAY, Wis. – The Green Bay Packers have a new challenger at kicker and perhaps a new golf partner for longtime standout Mason Crosby.

According to ESPN.com’s Field Yates, the Packers claimed rookie kicker Gabe Brkic off waivers from the Minnesota Vikings on Monday and released kicker Dominik Eberle.

Eberle had experience with new Packers special teams coordinator Rich Bisaccia but didn’t even make it to training camp. Eberle kicked in front of reporters three times during the offseason practices. He missed at least once in each of those sessions. Kicking indoors on Wednesday, he hit the left upright from 51 yards and was short from 53 yards.

Last season at Oklahoma, Brkic was one of three finalists for the Lou Groza Award. He made 20-of-26 field-goal attempts and all but one of his 58 point-after attempts. He tied for the NCAA lead with five field goals from 50-plus yards. He also tied the FBS single-game record with three field goals from beyond 50 yards against Tulane. One of those, a 56-yarder, was the school’s longest in the no-tee era. The missed extra point was the only one in his three seasons on the job.

Golf isn’t just a hobby for Brkic. He considers it part of his training.

“You can translate some things from golf into kicking field goals, punting,” Brkic told The Norman Transcript before last season. “This past summer, I improved my golf game a lot. I think, in turn, that helped our kicking game a lot. I think they go hand-in-hand.”

One point of translation: He’ll pick a target line and makes sure his golf swing goes through it.

“It’s the same with field goals,” he said. “I’ll pick a target in the stands and, as long as my leg swings straight through that, I’ll hit a good ball.”

He has another analogy for kicking.

“My dad’s best friend, when we were younger, he told me that kicking a football is like parallel parking,” Brkic told The Oklahoman. “So, every kick I just think, ‘I’m going to parallel park this football through the goalpost.’ That’s it.”

He said offseason workouts, which allowed him to put on 25 pounds during his Oklahoma career, were a big factor in his strong leg. So, too, are his mullet and mustache.

“He’s a funny guy,” then-Sooners coach Lincoln Riley said. “He doesn’t take anything too serious. ... I think he’s made that an advantage in his game. He’s a fun guy, man. I think the guys really like (and) respect him. He’s got a good balance and perspective on things.

“And he’s a lot of fun to have around when it’s fourth down and we’re on the 35-yard line, too.”

He doesn’t just kick footballs. He also kicks burritos.