The Giants had to play much of Sunday night’s game without a field goal kicker.
Minutes before the opening kickoff against the Kansas City Chiefs, the Giants announced that kicker Graham Gano was questionable to participate in the game due to a groin injury.
Gano did not appear in the game until the fourth quarter, when his 25-yard field goal with 10:12 remaining cut the Giants’ deficit to 16-9.
He appeared to hunch over slightly after kicking the ball.
Gano, 38, did not appear on the team’s injury report all week. And the team did not activate practice squad kicker Jude McAtamney. So something clearly happened during warmups.
Gano’s absence impacted the game immediately.
Even though punter Jamie Gillan was available to kick in Gano’s place – and has done so before – Brian Daboll went for a 4th and 3 from the Chiefs’ 28-yard line on the Giants’ first offensive drive.
Chiefs linebacker Nick Bolton batted down Russell Wilson’s pass at the line of scrimmage for a turnover on downs, and that set the tone for a frustrating night for the Giants without Gano available to put easy points on the board.
Gillan attempted an extra point after Cam Skattebo’s 13-yard rushing touchdown late in the second quarter, which would have given the Giants a 7-6 lead, but his kick was blocked.
This is the third time in three seasons that a kicker injury has done in Daboll’s Giants.
In Week 2 of last season at Washington, Gano aggravated an injury on the game’s opening kickoff. Gillan missed an extra point after the Giants’ first touchdown. Daboll unsuccessfully went for two after the Giants’ second and third TDs. And the Giants lost, 21-18.
In Week 8 of the 2023 season against the Jets, Daboll had an injured Gano attempt and miss a 35-yard field goal late in the fourth quarter. And the Giants lost in overtime, 13-10.
