Yesterday the Atlanta Falcons reportedly agreed to terms with kicker Lenny Krieg, according to a report from NFL Network's Mike Garafolo. The Falcons reportedly gave Krieg a signing bonus and a base salary-guarantee on a three-year deal.
Earlier today The Morning Shift reacted to the news, and explained why they believe this signing for the Falcons means there will indeed be a competition at kicker in training camp this year, and they talked about how this signing could even mean that Younghoe Koo will not be the team’s week one kicker.
“If he comes in here and shows out yes, if not then he might be that designated player.” Beau Morgan said
Beau Morgan also texted a source that he has that’s close to the Falcons about the Krieg signing, and Beau said what he gathered from his source is that “There will be an open competition at kicker. Lenny Krieg has a real shot to come in here and win that job.”
Krieg was one of five specialists invited to the 2025 NFL Combine last month as part of the NFL's International Player Pathway program. Krieg was the only kicker to make no mistakes, according to ELF’s website. He hit all 14 of his field goal attempts from anywhere between 35-55 yards, earning praise from former Colts punter Pat McAfee for his efforts.Krieg played for the EFL's Stuttgart Surge in 2025 and converted 11 of his 16 field goals (68.8%).
Beau Morgan also said there was reportedly a “bidding war” for the services for the German kicker after his impressive showing at the combine.
Younghoe had an uncharacteristic season in 2024, making 25 of his 34 field goal attempts and posting his lowest conversion rate (73.5%) since joining Atlanta in 2019. He missed a career-high three kicks in the Falcons' Week 10 loss to the New Orleans Saints, although it should be noted one of the attempts was blocked. Koo was placed on injured reserve before Atlanta's Week 16 game due to an issue with his right hip and therefore did not finish out the 8-9 season. Despite the injury Mike Johnson still believes Koo didn’t earn the five million dollars he’s owed this upcoming season.
“Let’s be honest he didn’t earn that money when you talk about his performance a year ago, and I know there’s injuries and everything else, but I thought at some point and I even pointed to the fact that I wouldn’t be shocked, before the signing, if they had actually used one of those seventh round picks on a kicker to be able to come in and make kind of the rookie minimum and you know go about it the way you would with a seventh round draft pick. I’m not sure what Younghoe’s future is here, but I know that this is a step towards saying alright you need to do better or it’s gonna be over quickly.” Mike said
As noted earlier Younghoe Koo is still on the Falcons’ roster as their kicker and is signed through the 2026 season. However, if the Falcons release Koo with a post June 1st designation the Falcons would save about 4.2 million dollars in cap space, and with the Falcons now reportedly having signed Krieg to a three-year deal it would make a lot of sense for the Falcons to move on from Koo after his struggles, his injuries, and the cap relief the Falcons would get if they move on from him.
At his end-of-season press conference Falcons head coach Raheem Morris alluded to bringing in some competition for Koo this offseason when he said "We missed entirely too many kicks this year. The brutal honest truth — that can't happen," Coach Morris also said "So, we got to find ways to make those kicks. That certainly plays into the part of not winning the amount of games you want to win. We got to find ways to create that competition across the board for all of us."
This signing seems to certainly be the team’s way of creating that competition at kicker, and maybe this is even a sign that change is coming at kicker as well.