Florida State Hall of Famer Signs Massive Extension With New York Giants
The 2023 NFL regular season is kicking off for the majority of teams this weekend after the Kansas City Chiefs and Detroit Lions got things started on Thursday night. There is a lot of optimism building for the New York Giants after signing star quarterback Daniel Jones to an extension and acquiring Pro Bowl tight end Darren Waller over the offseason.
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With only a few days remaining until the season gets underway, the Giants have made one last move. On Friday afternoon, the team announced that they were signing veteran kicker Graham Gano to an extension.
According to NFL Network's Ian Rapoport, that extension is quite a lofty one for the 36-year-old who is entering his 15th season at the professional level. Gano will be paid $16.5 million over three years with $11.3 million guaranteed and close to $2 million in injury guarantees when the contract kicks in next season.
The new contract will pay Gano an average of $5.5 million per season. That is one of the largest numbers in the NFL and in league history. Only Baltimore's Justin Tucker (four-years/$24-million) and Indianapolis' Matt Gay (four-years/$22.5 million) will make more than Gano.
The Pro Bowl kicker has been one of the most reliable legs in the league since going undrafted in 2009. He's suited up for Washington, Carolina, and the Giants during his career. Gano's best season came in 2020 when he connected on 31/32 field goals (96.9%) and 21/23 extra-point attempts (94.1%) with a long of 55 yards. During his career, he's made 313/370 field goal attempts and 376/395 extra-point attempts.
Gano spent his college career at Florida State where he spent time as a kicker and a punter. He averaged a career-high 43.4 yards per punt as a junior. Gano won the 2008 Lou Groza Award after leading the FBS in field goals made (24), 50-yard field goals (5), and field goal percentage (92.3%). He took over punting duties during Florida State's victory against Wisconsin in the 2008 Champs Sports Bowl. Gano was named the Most Valuable Player after pinning four punts inside the 10, including two at the 1.
The native of Scotland was inducted into Florida State's Athletic Hall of Fame in 2022. Gano is one of the top specialists in program history and has racked up nearly $42 million in career earnings (not including this contract extension).
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