This post is part three of a series counting down the 10 most important Las Vegas Raiders players under contract for next season (not including Derek Carr). Guys set to be free agents (Josh Jacobs, Jarrett Stidham, etc.) aren’t included here. Click here for Part One and Part Two of this series.
No. 8: Daniel Carlson
If your kicker lands on a list like this, it means one of two things: either your roster isn’t very good OR your kicker is awesome. For the Raiders, it turns out both of these things are true!
2022 Stats: 34/37 FG (9/9 from 20-29, 11/11 from 30-39, 3/4 from 40-49, 11/13 from 50+), 35/36 XP
2023 Outlook
Ranked the No. 1 kicker in the 2018 NFL Draft by ESPN’s draft guru Mel Kiper, it was no surprise when the Vikings snagged him in the fifth round. What was surprising was how bad Carlson was to begin his career. After nailing his only field goal attempt in Week 1, the following game was an absolute nightmare – he was 0/3 on field goals in a game that ended in a 29-29 tie with Minnesota’s dreaded rivals. The first miss was from 48 yards in regulation, while the second was a 49-yard miss in overtime and the third was a 35-yard miss as time expired.
The following week, Carlson was on waivers.
By Week 8, the rookie found his way onto the Raiders roster for what was essentially an audition — the Raiders were terrible (1-6) and needed a kicker. In his first game, he didn’t attempt a field goal, but in his second he went 1/2 — with the miss bouncing off the upright.
From that point forward? He didn’t miss — a perfect 15/15 (and 14/14 on extra points).
While he struggled in 2019, the Raiders stuck with him — and that decision has paid dividends, as he has missed just eight of his last 115 field goal attempts in the three years since (including an impressive 21/24 mark from beyond 50 yards). In the process, he was named second-team all-pro in 2021 and first-team in 2022.
So what’s in store for 2023? Hopefully more of the same. While the majority of this roster remains in flux, Carlson’s accomplishments (which were rewarded with a 4-year, $18.4 million contract that runs through 2025) ensure that their specialists unit is in good hands (writers note: if punter AJ Cole weren’t a punter, he’d have been on this list — but I just couldn’t bring myself to having two kickers in the top 10, and so the one who doesn’t score any points got the axe).
