The New York Giants were largely without a kicker on Sunday against the Kansas City Chiefs after Graham Gano suffered a groin injury during pre-game warmups.
“Graham got hurt during the defensive introductions before the game. He was out there kicking and got a groin, so he couldn’t go in the first half. Then he said he can kick from a certain distance in the second half,” head coach Brian Daboll said after the game.
Although Gano entered the game in the fourth quarter and toughed out a short field goal, the Giants don’t intend to gamble on his health in Week 4 and potentially beyond. They also don’t plan to relive the misery that found in both 2024 and in Week 3, when Gano suffered pre-game injuries and had it cost the team points (and potentially a win last year).
The Giants have signed kicker Younghoe Koo to their practice squad.
Koo, ironically, signed with Sunday’s opponent, the Los Angeles Chargers, as an undrafted rookie out of Georgia Southern following the 2017 NFL draft. He’s also spent time with the Atlanta Legends of the AAF (2019), New England Patriots (2019), and Atlanta Falcons (2019-2025).
The 31-year-old Koo, who was the NFL’s co-scoring leader in 2020 and made the Pro Bowl that same year, was released by the Falcons on September 19.
Koo has appeared in 93 career games, connecting on 181 of his 211 field goal attempts (85.8%) and 175 of his 182 point after attempts (96.2%).
In order to clear room on their practice squad, the Giants terminated the contract of linebacker Curtis Jacobs.
As it relates to Gano, Daboll told reporters on Monday that Gano would go for an MRI, but added that there wouldn’t be an update until Wednesday.
This article originally appeared on Giants Wire: New York Giants sign kicker Younghoe Koo to practice squad
Reporting by Dan Benton, Giants Wire / Giants Wire
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
