Giants' Graham Gano has a herniated disc in his neck and might not kick Sunday
Giants kicker Graham Gano kicks a field goal against the San Francisco 49ers during the third quarter of an NFL game Sunday at MetLife Stadium. Credit: AP/Seth Wenig
It’s been a frustrating year for Giants kicker Graham Gano, whose body hasn’t stayed healthy.
Gano didn’t practice Wednesday or Thursday because of a neck injury. He said he experienced discomfort last week that got worse after he did some lifting in the team’s weight room on Monday.
Gano was diagnosed as having a herniated disc in his neck.
“It’s pressing up against the spinal cord,” he said. “But it was probably beginning to happen and then, just after lifting, it kind of let go. Nothing that I could really stop.”
It’s the latest setback for the 38-year-old kicker, who already has missed four games this season with a groin injury. Gano said he’ll try to kick Friday at practice to determine his status for Sunday’s game against the Bears. He also got an injection in his spine Wednesday.
Coach Brian Daboll said Thursday that if Gano can’t go, Younghoe Koo will make his Giants debut at kicker.
That’s a change from when Gano was hurt before the Week 3 game against Kansas City. Jude McAtamney was called up as his replacement. He missed three extra points in two weeks before being released and re-signed to the practice squad.
Koo hasn’t kicked in a game since Week 1, when he missed what would have been a tying 44-yard field goal for the Falcons. He was released on Sept. 19 and the Giants signed him to the practice squad four days later.
“I’m grateful for the opportunity and I’ve been making it count every week, week in and week out,” Koo said Thursday. “Just staying ready for an opportunity.”
If Koo starts, he’ll be the seventh kicker the Giants have used since the beginning of the 2023 season. Gano has been on injured reserve in each of those seasons. He suffered a groin injury that became a hamstring injury and cost him seven games last season.
Gano started this season 8-for-8 on field goals before missing a 45-yard attempt and making a 22-yarder last Sunday against the 49ers. He’s 9-for-9 on extra points.
“Obviously, all I want to do is play football. I can’t control the injuries that have happened,” he said. “It’s not like I’ve done something that is out of the ordinary, like outside the building, to hurt myself or anything. So I think that’s frustrating. I hear everyone else’s frustration.”
It’s one thing for people to yell at him or voice their anger on the internet, and quite another when those messages sink to a disturbing level. Gano said that since sports betting became legal, every week, he has had people tell him to commit suicide because he’s missed or made a kick that loses them money.
“It was the other day, somebody told me to get cancer and die,” Gano said. “I mean, that stuff’s part of it. But just playing this long, that stuff, you’re used to it by now.”
Gano said he deals with it by shutting off social media. He also understands it’s something that’s become harder for younger players growing up in a world shaped by social media and betting.
He has documented and kept track of the most extreme social media messages for three years, alerting the Giants and NFL security.
Gano isn’t sure if this neck injury is something he’ll deal with for an extended time. He’ll know more Friday, when he’ll kick for the first time this week.
“At the end of the day, I want people to know I care,” he said. “I want to play. I want to be the best I can. I want to make every kick. I want to be the best teammate I can. It’s something I care about.”
Notes & quotes: CB Paulson Adebo (knee), WR Beaux Collins (neck), LB Victor Dimukeje (shoulder), DL Chauncey Golston (neck), LB Darius Muasau (ankle) and C John Michael Schmitz (shin) didn’t practice for a second straight day . . . T Jermaine Eluemunor (pectoral) was a limited participant after being out Wednesday . . . LB Demetrius Flannigan-Fowles (pectoral) was added to the injury report after being limited Thursday.
Evan Barnes covers the Giants for Newsday. He previously covered the Brooklyn Nets, Memphis football and the Memphis Grizzlies and also covered prep sports in Los Angeles.
