Jaguars didn't ditch Riley Patterson just for kicks. They wanted Brandon McManus' big leg

The Jacksonville Jaguars posed a special-teams question for themselves during OTAs:

Why get rid of Riley Patterson, a kicker who not only made 19 of his last 20 field-goal attempts during the regular season but went 3-for-3 in the postseason, including the game-winner against the Los Angeles Chargers that delivered the Jaguars their first post-season victory since 2017?

The answer: they got the big leg this staff has been coveting for two years when the chance came to snap up 10-year veteran Brandon McManus, who has made 40 of 72 field-goal attempts of 50 yards or longer during his career, including a 61-yarder last season.

McManus was waived by Denver and the Jags jumped at the chance to secure his services.

Patterson was traded to Detroit (where he played before coming to the Jaguars), no doubt with a hearty thanks for making almost every kick within his range during the team’s playoff stretch run. But he attempted only three kicks beyond 50 yards (making two), while McManus has made 23 of 37 (62.1) in the past three seasons, and was tied for fifth in the league by making eight kicks of 50 yards or longer in 2022.

Consider also that Patterson had touchbacks on only half of his 88 kickoffs, while McManus stuck 69 percent (51 of 73) in the end zone.

McManus also can not only pound the ball through the end zone at will but that gives teams the ball on the 25-yard line. McManus can also swing the ball to all corners of the field and keep it in play, thus setting up the possibility that the Jaguars’ swarming coverage unit can pin an offense even deeper.

Fooling return teams

McManus (6 feet 3, 210 pounds) can do something most kickers can’t. He lines up just a step or two behind the ball on kickoffs and is strong enough to get the ball in the end zone.

But that’s not the real reason. McManus does it because a receiving team simply can’t get a clue as to where he’s going to put the ball since he doesn’t telegraph it with a long run-up to the ball — a ploy he said he worked on with former Jaguars special teams coordinator Joe DeCamillis in 2015-16.

“I love kickoffs,” McManus said. “With Joe, we got to be real creative, showing I’m kicking right, kicking left … no one knows where I’m kicking the ball because I’m so close to it. I don’t give away the direction.”

McManus also has made an impression in the locker room and was vote the team's player representative.

Misses in camp of little concern

There’s no question McManus has one of the strongest legs of any Jaguar kicker in team history. But in training camp practices, accuracy sometimes deserted him and during one session he missed two attempts in a row, went to another field with snapper Ross Matiscik and holder Logan Cooke — and missed two more.

During one practice the final week of camp, McManus missed three or four (it was perhaps the windiest day of camp) and angrily snatched his helmet off.

However, he made every kick in the preseason games (3 of 3 on field-goal attempts, 2 of 2 on conversion), and special teams coordinator Heath Farwell not only professes not to worry but said McManus had a good camp under one set of circumstances: an injury to Matiscik on the first punt of the first preseason game at Dallas has led to some musical chairs at that spot, with Carson Tinker and Tucker Addington taking turns as his replacement.

“[McManus] has a history of making big kicks and as far as I’m concerned, he’s had a good camp,” Farwell said. “He’s had some unfortunate circumstances … with different snappers but he’s a fantastic kicker who has done it a long time.”

Farwell also can’t want to take McManus’ talents on kickoffs out for a regular-season spin.

“He’s a great directional kicker,” he said. “He can also bomb them out of the back [of the end zone].”

Jags are stable elsewhere

The Jaguars are solid once again at every other aspect of special teams. Punter Logan Cooke has had a fine camp and continues to show an uncanny ability to get off punts with different trajectories and spins, to the corners of the field. Matisick should be back for the opening game on Sept. 10.

Jamal Agnew was used sparingly on returns during training camp and the preseason games to give rookie Parker Washington most of the reps but come opening day, Agnew will be back deep and coverage teams will be sweating bullets.

Even though he didn’t have a return touchdown last season, Agnew still had some big plays down the stretch, got robbed one kickoff return at Tennessee on a phantom holding penalty and still has more special-teams touchdowns (seven) than any NFL player since he came into the league in 2017.

'Core Four' players back

And the Jags will have most of their “Core Four” special teams players back — those who play on kickoff and punt, and kickoff return and punt return teams such as Andrew Wingard, Caleb Johnson, Adam Gotsis, Shaq Quarterman, Tim Jones, Chad Muma, Daniel Thomas and K’Lavon Chaisson.

Rookies such as Washington, Antonio Johnson, Christian Braswell and Brenton Strange also look like they will be worked into the coverage and return team mix.

“Our Core Four guys haven’t played [in preseason games] so that’s a big part of evaluating the young guys and see what we’ve got,” Farwell said. “But as far as a group, we’ve taken off where we left off last season. I like where we’re at.”

And the question about McManus’ accuracy?

Farwell said it shouldn’t be a question at all.

“He’s doing fantastic,” he said.

This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: Brandon McManus has big leg, wily ways on kickoffs for Jags special teams