New Packers Long Snapper Cal Adomitis Isn’t Just Keeping the Seat Warm

GREEN BAY, Wis. – Conventional wisdom suggests Cal Adomitis is the long-snapping version of a camp leg. The Packers signed their long snapper, Matt Orzech, to a three-year contract extension about 11 months ago.

Surely, the Packers aren’t going to make a change with Orzech on the PUP list with a calf injury.

Right?

Well, not so fast. If the Packers were merely looking for a long snapper to get the team through the first week or so of training camp, they could have inked Ohio State rookie John Ferlmann, who also worked out for the Packers on Thursday.

Instead, they signed the best veteran available, Adomitis, who snapped for the Bengals from 2022 through 2024 and for the Eagles for nine games last season when their snapper was injured.

“I certainly believe there’s a chance,” Adomitis said after his first practice on Friday. “I certainly believe if I play the way I’m capable of playing, then I give them a tough decision, which is my goal.”

While Adomitis has enjoyed his interactions with Orzech over the years, including at the joint practice a couple years ago in Cincinnati, and appreciates his welcoming approach since signing, Adomitis isn’t in Green Bay for you-know-whats and giggles. If the field-goal unit, which includes rookie kicker Trey Smack, starts humming when the team finally starts kicking at training camp on Sunday, it’s possible the Packers will not want to upset the apple cart.

“I certainly do believe in my ability to come in and compete, and in a week or two, maybe make the special teams staff have to make a difficult decision,” he said.

When the Eagles’ snapper was healthy late last season, they released Adomitis. He went unsigned through free agency, so the Packers at least are giving him a chance to get his name out there and to get into a groove.

“Just an opportunity. I think that’s something I’ve tried to keep a perspective with all my different stints in different places so far,” he said. “It’s always a chance to learn, always a chance to have a new set of eyes watch and critique you and get pointers.

“And that’s one thing I take pride in is everywhere I go, I really try to learn everything I can from the people I’m around. And I think it’s benefited me as a player. And I think my level of play has been improving through the years and even in the past year, so I’m just excited to just have another chance to at least get a couple weeks of good practice and competition.”

Being an NFL specialist is a tough profession. Usually, teams carry one kicker, one punter and one long snapper. According to Ourlads, the Packers are one of only eight teams with more than one long snapper.

So, from that perspective, it was a challenge for Adomitis to be sitting idly at home waiting for a phone call to provide another opportunity.

“It can be [frustrating], but that’s where, as a competitor, I think you confide in the people you trust and your agent and what they’re hearing, and I trust my agent to be honest with me,” he said. “If he’s just like, ‘Hey, man, the phones aren’t ringing,’ I trust him to be honest with me in that scenario. But that wasn’t the word I’d gotten yet. So, it’s kind of up to me at that point to just stay positive and keep training and stay ready.”

So, his agent, Chris Turnage, reached out earlier in the week. Adomitis would be one of three snappers with an opportunity to at least be a short-term fill-in. Adomitis, who enjoys training, eating healthy and the “behind-the-scenes part of the job,” was ready for the opportunity and won the competition.

Adomitis’ path to the NFL is similar to that of a lot of snappers. It was a way to continue competing in a sport he loves. He tried it at his father’s urging.

“I was playing fullback, tight end and was a decent high school player,” he said. “Probably wasn’t going to be a Division I tight end or fullback or anything. And my dad was the one that was like, ‘Hey, long snapping could be a way to fulfill that Power-5 football dream.’ And I picked up on it pretty quickly just because I’d played a lot of baseball and thrown a lot through the years, and some of that kind of goes hand in hand with snapping, and that’s how I got the start.

“And then I had a really good special teams coordinator at Pitt and a good coaching staff that always helped and encouraged me, and just got really passionate about it, and had five good years in college to train it. And that’s pretty much how it happened for me.”

It worked. In 2022, Adomitis was one of two snappers at the Senior Bowl and the only one at the Scouting Combine.

With success at Pitt and with distinctive long hair, he took advantage of NIL opportunities to do a Locks for Love fund-raiser that raised $114,000 to help kids with cancer in his hometown of Pittsburgh.

Wherever he’s playing this season, the hair’s probably going to stay.

“I’m scared to cut it again because I’m afraid it won’t grow back at this point,” he said with a laugh.

What happened today at Packers training camp?

A lot.

Highlighted by 1-minute drills, here's the Play of the Day, Player of the Day, the winning unit, injuries, lineups, highlights and more from Practice 3. ⬇️https://t.co/Q4LvYL7L04
— Bill Huber (@BillHuberNFL) July 31, 2026

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