Green Bay Packers clear the way for Wicklow native Daniel Whelan to play in the NFL

Whelan, native of Enniskerry in county Wicklow, had to battle it out with O’Donnell for the lone spot as the punter for the Green Bay Packers.

And it seems the 24-year-old’s average of 62.5 yards per punt in the Packers’ pre-season win over the Seattle Seahawks on Saturday is enough to convince the team to go with Whelan’s potential over O’Donnell’s experience.

Whelan moved to the United States from the Garden County aged 13, and he played as punter with the UC Davis Aggies in the Big Sky Conference before spending a season in the XFL, American football’s largest minor professional league, with the D.C Defenders.

He joined the Packers for training camp this summer, and featured across Green Bay’s three pre-season clashes.

Both Whelan and O’Donnell got to play during those three games in a bid to be the team’s punter, and Green Bay media expected that when the Packers announce their cut 53-man squad on Tuesday, they would have placed their faith in 32-year-old O’Donnell, who has played in the NFL since 2014

But Whelan’s big-leg ability has seemingly won out after the Wisconsin-based team said today that they have released O’Donnell from the club.

Should Whelan punt for the Packers in their season opener against the Chicago Bears on September 10, he will be the first Irish-born player to feature in the NFL since Neil O’Donoghue played with the St Louis Cardinals in 1985.

Throughout training camp, Whelan regularly boomed punts, frequently with hang durations of 4.5 seconds or higher, with no shanks or mishits.

O’Donnell was his usual reliable self, but the Packers clearly want to improve on their 28th-ranked gross average and 30th-ranked net average from last year.

By dismissing O’Donnell, the Packers will earn $1.25 million in salary cap space. O’Donnell was in the last year of a two-year, $4 million deal.