GREEN BAY, Wis. — The Packers feel “very, very comfortable” with the signing of veteran kicker Brandon McManus despite accusations of sexual assault against him, general manager Brian Gutekunst said Wednesday.
According to the Associated Press, Daisy Torres and Nicole Anderson sued McManus for allegedly trying to kiss one of them and grinding against both while the women were working as flight attendants on the Jacksonville Jaguars’ flight to London in September 2023. Torres and Anderson made their names public after initially filing their suit anonymously because a judge ruled the case didn’t meet the criteria required for anonymity, according to the AP.
The women were seeking more than $1 million in damages, according to the AP, which also included details from the lawsuit that alleges McManus got drunk before sexually assaulting the two women and passed out $100 bills to encourage them to drink and dance inappropriately.
The NFL conducted an investigation and found there was insufficient evidence that McManus violated the league’s personal conduct policy. The league also said that if new information presents itself, the NFL could consider looking into it.
McManus said Wednesday in the Packers locker room that the civil lawsuit involving him is “resolved.” When asked if it was dropped or settled, McManus again said it was “resolved.” In a statement to The Athletic, McManus’ attorney, Brett Gallaway, said, “The case has been resolved. I look forward to seeing Brandon play for the Packers on Sunday.”
“I was always upfront and honest about it,” McManus said, adding he couldn’t speak on the investigation. “That’s how I was able to kind of get through this all.”
The attorney who represented Torres and Anderson, Tony Buzbee, told ESPN in a story published Sept. 30 that he was still working to schedule a meeting between the league and the two women and that he was confused as to why the NFL would conclude its investigation without speaking with the women.
A league source told The Athletic on Wednesday that the NFL reached out multiple times to the accusers’ representation to request a meeting with the women but never heard back. Buzbee didn’t respond to an email from The Athletic on Wednesday regarding the matter.
Miami-based attorney Brandon Chase is listed in online court documents as the attorney for both women now and didn’t respond immediately to a message left for him over the phone on Wednesday.
Online court records in Florida show that McManus’ attorney will take the deposition of Anderson, one of the flight attendants, on Friday morning in Jacksonville. The same is scheduled with Torres, the other flight attendant, next Tuesday. The court document states that “the deposition is being taken, for purposes of discovery, and for use at trial or hearing, or for such other purposes as are permitted under the applicable rules and governing law and shall continue from day to day until completed.”
Gutekunst said the Packers went through the details of the investigation with the league and felt “very good about their investigation and what they got out of it to make us comfortable at this point.”
“I had a really good conversation with Brandon last night,” Gutekunst said. “When these things got cleared up within the league and he got past some other things, those conversations kind of just picked up (with agent Drew Rosenhaus). We wanted to make sure that we did our due diligence. Again, we feel really good about that where we sit right now. We’re excited to get him out there.”
On the field, the Packers felt the need to make a kicker change after undrafted rookie Brayden Narveson went 12-of-17 on field goals over the first six games, including a miss from 44 yards during a 2-for-3 day last Sunday against the Cardinals. All five of Narveson’s misses this season — he made all 16 of his extra-point attempts — either drifted wide right or hit off the right upright. Narveson, whom the Packers claimed off waivers from the Titans after releasing Anders Carlson and Greg Joseph this summer, ranks 35th in the NFL in field-goal percentage (70.6 percent).
McManus, 33, played for the Broncos from 2014-2022 and the Jaguars in 2023. The Commanders released him this offseason after the accusations became public. McManus is a career 81.4-percent field-goal kicker. In the last three seasons, he went 26-for-31 (83.9 percent), 28-for-36 (77.8) and 30-for-37 (81.1). During those three years, he was 29-of-31 on kicks between 40-49 yards and 18-of-32 on kicks from at least 50 yards. Narveson didn’t attempt a field goal of at least 50 yards with the Packers. McManus is 93-of-96 on extra points since the start of the 2021 season.
“Obviously a very experienced kicker,” Gutekunst said of McManus. “He’s been in very high-pressure situations and kicked a long time in weather, an outdoor stadium. So he’s just has a lot of experience, very talented, very gifted, very strong leg. He’s been in the fire and he’s had the ups and downs that all kickers go through and been able to come out the other side.”
(Photo: Perry Knotts / Getty Images)
