Broncos releasing veteran kicker Brandon McManus

The Denver Broncos released veteran kicker Brandon McManus on Tuesday after nine seasons with the franchise.

McManus first announced the news on Twitter.

The @Broncos have informed me I’ve been released. More to come in the following days

— Brandon McManus (@thekidmcmanus) May 23, 2023

Seventeen minutes later, Denver made the news official with a tweet of their own and a press release.

McManus, who had been the longest-tenured member of the team on the current roster, was released with a Post-June 1 designation.

“Brandon has been a key player and presence with the Broncos for nearly a decade, making outstanding contributions to our team and community,” Broncos general manager George Paton said in a statement. “Developing into one of the NFL’s most productive kickers, Brandon made so many clutch kicks for this franchise over the years as a Super Bowl champion and team captain. He will always hold a special place in Denver Broncos history. We thank Brandon for all he did for the Broncos, and we wish him and his family the very best in the future.”

Brandon McManus spent nine years with the Denver Broncos

Brandon McManus went undrafted out of Temple in the 2013 NFL Draft. He spent that first preseason with the Indianapolis Colts before being released.

He first joined the Broncos in an August 2014 trade with the New York Giants with Denver starting kicker Matt Prater missing the first four games of the year due to a suspension.

Instead of giving Prater a chance to earn back the job, Denver released Prater and handed the starting role to McManus. However, the team released McManus in November to sign Connor Barth. The Broncos brought back McManus soon after to serve as a kickoff specialist.

Heading into the 2015 season, McManus and Barth had a competition for the starting kicker role, which McManus won. He had been the starting kicker ever since, most notably helping the team win Super Bowl 50 over the Carolina Panthers.

For his career, McManus is 81.4% on field goal attempts and 96.9% on PATs. He also has a touchback percentage on kickoffs of 69.3%.

The longest field goal of his career is 61 yards. He hasn’t missed a field goal from between 40 and 49 yards over the last three seasons.

In 2022, he made 77.3% of his field goal attempts and 92.6% of his PATs.

McManus has also been a captain for the Broncos in recent seasons.