Is there any concern with Green Bay Packers long snapper Matt Orzech, who had a high punt snap against the Rams and …
“I have absolutely no concern,” special teams coordinator Rich Bisaccia interrupted. “You can save the rest of your question.”
Against the Rams three weeks ago, Orzech’s punt snap would have sailed out of the end zone if not for a leaping catch by punter Daniel Whelan. Last week against the Texans, Orzech’s snap on the game-winning field goal was low, with Whelan saving the day with a superb catch and hold to allow Brandon McManus to make the winning field goal.
After two terrible snaps in three weeks, why does Bisaccia have such a strong level of trust?
“Because I see him every day,” Bisaccia said. “I see over 70 snaps a day every day. The guy’s been with us for two years so my experience, my wisdom tells me he’s a really good player. I’ll stand by that.”
PFF’s grades certainly should not be treated as gospel. However, for what they’re worth, Orzech, who was released and re-signed this week, has the fourth-lowest grade among regular snappers.
“He’s played in a Super Bowl and he is a calming force for us,” Bisaccia said. “There was a little bit of a revolving door here at snapper.”
Oddly, that revolving door includes the Eagles’ Rick Lovato, the Panthers’ J.J. Jansen, the Buccaneers’ Zach Triner and the 49ers’ Taybor Pepper.
All four are established snappers who were with the Packers at the start of or early in their careers.
Long snapper wasn’t the only problem on Green Bay’s special teams last week. There was a muffed punt that Keisean Nixon didn’t catch or communicate, which led to a turnover. There was Jayden Reed sprinting backward about 20 yards to catch the ball at the goal line, resulting in 16 yards of lost field position. There was a long kickoff return that included three missed tackles, resulting in about 15 yards of field position.
At the time of his hiring in 2022, Bisaccia was the highest-paid special teams coordinator in the NFL.