Saints to sign former Texas, Texas State kicker Mason Shipley

Here's that competition at kicker New Orleans Saints fans have been looking for. Former Texas kicker Mason Shipley is signing with the Saints, per the Longhorns' official social media account. Shipley went 20-of-24 on field goals while making all 48 of his extra points at Texas last season, though he was just 2-of-5 from 50 or more yards. His longest successful field goal traveled 53 yards.

Shipley spent the previous three years at Texas State and only missed three of his 114 of his point-after attempts while going 31-of-35 on field goals (making 3 of 5 tries from 50-plus yards), connecting from distances of 54 and 60 yards.

He should bring good competition for Charlie Smyth, who replaced Blake Grupe late in 2025 and went 12-of 16 on field goals, with his longest hitting from 57 yards. Smyth did make all 13 of his extra point tries, too. He's no slouch but it's important the Saints bring in some competition for him. They've already invested heavy resources on special teams this spring by signing punter Ryan Wright in free agency and drafting guys like Lorenzo Styles Jr. (an ace gunner) and Barion Brown (the SEC record holder for kick return touchdowns).

This article originally appeared on Saints Wire: Undrafted free agency: Saints sign former Texas kicker Mason Shipley