When the game between the Packers and Raiders kicks off on Monday, there's a good chance that the two most excited people in the stadium are going to he Hans and Jodie Carlson and that's because TWO of their kids will be kicking in the game.
Not only are they the parents of Raiders All-Pro kicker Daniel Carlson, but they're also the parents of Packers rookie kicker Anders Carlson. The two brothers will be facing off in Las Vegas, marking the first time in 36 years that there's been a brotherly kicking duel in the NFL. The last time it happened came in 1987 when Chris Bahr (Raiders) faced Matt Bahr (Browns) in a game that Cleveland would win 24-17.
Although there's been some brotherly trash-talk this week, Daniel admits that the game is definitely special.
"I'm like 1,000,000 and 0 in brotherly competition, but we're 0-0 in overall football competition," Daniel said this week, via Madison.com.
Yes, there is a game to play on Monday night, but Daniel also wants to make sure he fully appreciates the moment.
"There's going to be a balance of, 'Hey, I got a game to get ready for,'" Daniel said. "But I want to be conscious of taking some moments out and appreciating, 'Hey, we've both worked really hard. This has been our dream for a while. To see it come to fruition and get to play against each other is really special.'"
For Jodie and Hans, they have to make a tough decision every week about which game to attend. For instance the parents skipped the Raiders Week 1 win over the Broncos so they could be in Chicago to watch Anders make his NFL debut.
"I apologized to Daniel for not being at the Raiders-Broncos game, because we usually make that," Jodie said, via ESPN.com. "But we were going to Chicago and we couldn't make them both. Daniel said, 'Mom, don't apologize. It's just like when we were kids and had Saturday morning soccer games and you couldn't make them all with three sons. So just relax and enjoy and appreciate the opportunity that we're still able to play sports.'"
This week, the parents won't have to make a decision since their two sons will be kicking in the same stadium.
So who has the upper-leg in this game?
Although rookie kickers can sometimes struggle, that hasn't been the case with Anders who has hit 100% of his kicks this year. Not only is he a perfect 9 of 9 on extra points, but he's also 5 of 5 on field goals. Not to be outdone, Daniel has been just as good. The Raiders kicker is also perfect on the year, going 6 of 6 on extra points and 4 of 4 on field goals.
Both brothers attended Auburn and now that they're in the NFL, they've learned a lot from the same coach: Rich Bisaccia.
Bisaccia is now the Packers special teams coordinator, but he spent four seasons with Daniel in Las Vegas as the Raiders' special teams coach (and he was even the team's interim head coach for a brief stint).
"They're both really good players and they're both playing well right now, so it should be great for their family," Bisaccia said this week, via Madison.com. "Hopefully, it's better for us."
When the game kicks off on Monday, Jodie and Hans will have the best seats in the house.
"We sit in the first row behind the goalposts," Hans said, via ESPN. "That's a good spot for the kickers' parents."
Overall, the Carlsons are just the sixth set of brothers to both kick in the NFL at the same time. The first time it happened came with Pete Gogolak (1964-74) and his brother Charlie (1966-72). During the 1970s, Nick Mike-Mayer (1973-83) and his brother Steve (1975-80) both spent time kicking in the NFL. The most successful brotherly duo was probably the aforementioned Bahrs with both Chris (1976-89) and Matt (1979-95) kicking in the NFL for more than a decade.
The Zendejas family produced THREE brothers who kicked in the NFL, although all three of them had relatively short careers. Joaquin played two games in 1983 while his brothers Max (1986-88) and Luis (1987-89) both played three seasons with two of those overlapping. They also had a cousin in Tony Zendejas, who kicked from 1985 to 1995.
The most recent brothers to kick in the NFL at the same time would be the Gramaticas. Martin spent 10 seasons in the NFL (1999-2008) while his brother Bill was in the league for four years (2001-04).
With Monday's game, the Carlsons will now be taking the mantle as the NFL's premier set of kicking brothers.
