Saints kicker race stays unsettled as Week 1 approaches, Charlie Smyth and Tanner Brown remain in the mix

The New Orleans Saints entered training camp with several jobs still being evaluated, but the most closely watched position battle is the one that rarely allows a long leash. With only days remaining before the team’s final preseason game, the Saints have not settled on a clear Week 1 kicker, and Charlie Smyth and Tanner Brown are still seen as legitimate options.

According to Yahoo Sports’ Saints reacts-style survey, Smyth and Brown have been battling for the starting role since camp began. The framing matters because the kicker job often functions as a tiebreaker within the roster, with whoever wins the job typically becoming the stable option for field goals, extra points, and late-game matchups.

The poll coverage reflects a team in evaluation mode rather than a team that has already declared a winner. In practical terms, kicking decisions can influence how coaches manage field position and late-game strategy, especially when teams anticipate pressure situations where a small execution margin can carry outsized weight.

What to take from the ongoing competition is that the Saints appear to be treating the kicking role as a true performance question rather than a mere placeholder. At this stage of the calendar, teams generally look for consistency trends that hold up beyond early-camp reps. With New Orleans still weighing two kickers, it suggests the staff wants more certainty before making the final call.

Neither kicker was presented as a proven lock in the Yahoo Sports report, and the piece emphasizes that “there still isn’t a clear favorite” heading into the final preseason test. That language points to an unsettled camp storyline, one that can shift quickly if one kicker distinguishes himself in the last live work before the regular season begins.

For fans and roster observers, the key watch point is the Saints’ final preseason game. Whoever performs more convincingly in that environment typically draws the clearest separation, whether through accuracy on attempts, reliability on contact and snap-timing rhythm, or composure when the situation tightens.

The kicker battle also fits into a broader NFL preseason reality: teams often narrow down positions in waves, but kicking can be one of the last jobs finalized. That makes the Saints’ late-stage uncertainty worth monitoring, because the decision is not just ceremonial, it can define the team’s day-to-day execution at the point of scoring.

As New Orleans prepares for its Week 1 kickoff, the most direct question remains simple: will the Saints staff finally pick Smyth or Brown, or will the final preseason game leave the competition unresolved? Either way, the outcome should clarify the direction of the roster decision and the on-field roles the coaching staff intends to prioritize early in the season.