Latest news with #MarkMcNamee
Extra.ie
6 days ago
- Sport
- Extra.ie
Dublin goalkeeper signs with NFL giants from IPP
Mark McNamee is the latest Irish star to hang up his GAA gloves for a move across the pond to the NFL. The former Ballyboden St Enda's goalkeeper has signed for Green Bay Packers after making the International Player Pathway (IPP) programme for 2025. The Dublin native joins another Irish kicker on the roster, Dan Whelan, who signed for the Packers in 2023. Mark McNamee is a former goalkeeper for Ballyboden St Enda's in Dublin. Pic: Piaras Ó Mídheach/Sportsfile Mark is a member of The Leader Kicking group and follows in the footsteps of ex-Down GAA footballer Charlie Smyth, who joined the New Orleans Saints practice squad through the programme last year. 'Another huge moment for the sport in Ireland as more and more teams in College/NFL recognize our elite leg talent,' said Tadhg Leader, the NFL IPP Kicking and Punting coach who the 25-year-old worked with. 'Congrats to you and your family Mark. Let's keep it rolling. Work to do.' Mark joined Canadian Football League franchise BC Lions after being included in the IPP but was released last month after playing two pre-season games for the Vancouver-based franchise. Jude McAtamney made his NFL regular season debut in 2024. Pic:In November, Derry's Jude McAtamney became the first Irish-born placekicker to feature in a regular season NFL game since 1985. He made his debut for New York Giants against the Washington Commanders in a game where he successfully kicked a field goal and some extra points. Meanwhile, Charlie Smyth is still trying to break into the Saints gameday squad after signing a three-year deal in 2024. Other GAA stars such as Rory Beggan and Mark Jackson also impressed at the NFL Combines last year but unfortunately did not receive contract offers.
BBC News
6 days ago
- Sport
- BBC News
Irish kicker McNamee signs NFL deal with Packers
Irish kicker Mark McNamee has signed a contract with the Green Bay Packers in the 25-year-old from Wicklow was part of the 2025 International Player Pathway programme and took part in the NFL Combine in March.A former goalkeeper for his Gaelic club Ballyboden St Endas, McNamee spent June with the BC Lions in the Canadian Football League before signing with the Packers on becomes the second Irish kicker on their roster, joining Wicklow-born Dan Charlie Smyth (New Orelans Saints) and Jude McAtamney (New York Giants), there are now four kickers from the Island of Ireland plying their trade in the Packers are one of the most successful American football teams with a record 13 league championships and have won the Superbowl four times.
The 42
6 days ago
- Sport
- The 42
Former Ballyboden St Enda's goalkeeper signs with NFL's Green Bay Packers
THE NFL'S GREEN Bay Packers have announced the bolt-from-the-blue signing of Dubliner Mark McNamee as their backup kicker ahead of training camp. McNamee, a former Gaelic football goalkeeper with Ballyboden St Enda's, has joined Green Bay following his recent release by Canadian Football League (CFL) outfit BC Lions. The Packers start training camp on Wednesday and currently require a backup kicker behind veteran Brandon McManus. McNamee today joined Green Bay's 91-man off-season roster, for the moment taking the International Player Pathway (IPP) spot previously occupied by Australian kicker Alex Hale. Advertisement Mark McNamee in action for Ballyboden St Enda's. Ballyboden St Enda's Ballyboden St Enda's Hale, who signed with the Packers last year, was cut on Monday after suffering a freak eye injury during a workout. The Packers may still re-sign him when he recovers. In the meantime, McNamee will get the opportunity to showcase his talent and make the backup position his own before the Packers trim their roster ahead of the 2025 season. The six-foot-four, 208-pound Dubliner is a product of Tadhg Leader's 'Leader Kicking' programme and joined the NFL's International Player Pathway scheme only in February of this year. McNamee completed 13 of his 14 field goal attempts at the NFL Combine but was not selected in the NFL Draft — even vastly more experienced kickers coming out of college are more typically signed in free agency after the draft. McNamee, though, entered the CFL's International Draft and was selected by the Vancouver-based BC Lions in the second round. He featured in both of the Lions' preseason games in May, successfully kicking his one field goal attempt in each of them (from 32 yards and 42 yards respectively). However, McNamee was released by the Lions on 1 June. He has now become the second Irishman at the Packers, joining starting punter Dan Whelan who grew up in Enniskerry, Co. Wicklow, before moving to the States with his family when he was 13. While Whelan is a full-time member of the Packers' roster, McNamee will first aim to emulate the progress of fellow Irish kickers Jude McAtamney and Charlie Smyth who have earned International Player Pathway spots on the practice squads of the New York Giants and New Orleans Saints respectively. Practice-squad players train with with a club's 53-man first-team roster and can be elevated to a matchday squad — up to three times per season in the case of IPP players such as McAtamney and Smyth — in the event of an injury or a loss of form suffered by one of those first-choice players. They are also free to sign a first-team contract with a different franchise. Practice squad players typically earn $12,500 per week — or $225,000 over the course of an 18-week season.
RTÉ News
6 days ago
- Sport
- RTÉ News
Mark McNamee signs contract with Green Bay Packers
Mark McNamee has become the latest Irish recruit in the NFL after the kicker signed for the Green Bay Packers. McNamee, a former Ballyboden St Enda's goalkeeper, was included in this year's International Player Pathway Program and subsequently joined Canadian Football League franchise BC Lions. He played two pre-season games for the Vancouver-based franchise but was released last month. The 25-year old was tonight signed by the Packers as their back-up kicker and International Player Pathway Program player, with Australian Alex Hales departing. McNamee becomes the second Irish player on the Packers roster, alongside Wicklow-born punter Daniel Whelan. Former Down goalkeeper Charlie Smyth is another noted graduate of the IPPP, having earned a contract with the New Orleans Saints in 2024.
Irish Independent
6 days ago
- Sport
- Irish Independent
Ballyboden goalkeeper Mark McNamee signs with Green Bay Packers
The Irish representation in the NFL continues to grow as Dubliner Mark McNamee has signed with the Green Bay Packers to become the Wisconsin team's back-up kicker.
