Giants Preview Three-Way Kicking Battle

Now, per Ryan Dunleavy of the New York Post, a three-way kicking competition will commence for the offseason. The participants in this three-way contest will be the incumbent Ben Sauls, veteran free agent addition Jason Sanders, and undrafted rookie Dominic Zvada.

Sauls didn’t join the G-Men until halfway through his rookie season. With five years of experience kicking at Acrisure Stadium while at Pitt, Sauls initially signed with the Steelers after going undrafted last year. He was waived near the end of the preseason in the runup to final roster cuts and landed on the Falcons’ practice squad nearly a month after clearing waivers. The Saints dropped him from their taxi squad, and he landed on New York’s a week later.

At this point in the Giants’ season, the team had seen a three-game stint of Jude McAtamney as an injury replacement for Gano and was preparing for a five-game look at Younghoe Koo replacing Gano when he went down for a second time. Sauls didn’t get an opportunity to kick for New York until making his NFL debut down the stretch in the final three games of the regular season. The Giants signed him to the active roster on a deal that would keep him under contract through the 2026 season after his first game with the team, and in his three-game opportunity, he went 8-for-8 on field goal attempts and converted all seven extra point attempts.

Sanders signed with the Giants early in the offseason and just before the team released Gano. A one-time first-team All-Pro, Sanders is joining only his second NFL team after a eight-year stay with the Dolphins who drafted him. Sanders alternated strong and poor performances over his first four years in the league but showed consistent improvement over each of the next three. He was coming off a campaign in which he posted career highs in field goals made (37) and 50+-yard field goals made (12), showing incredible accuracy in both areas, when he missed the entire 2025 season with a hip injury that did not require surgery.

Zvada makes his way to the NFL after four years as a primary kicker at the collegiate level. He started his career at Arkansas State where he missed only one field goal attempt and extra point attempt as a true freshman. Following his second year with the Red Wolves, Zvada transferred to Michigan and put on another one-miss performance in each kicking category for the Wolverines. After those two seasons, in which he went 38 of 40, he had letdown years, combining to go 34 of 47 in 2023 and 2025. He showed off his strong leg in college, as well, with double-digit makes over 50 yards in his collegiate career.

According to new head coach and former special team coach John Harbaugh, “it’s going to be a competition…right out of the gates.” During rookie minicamp, Zvada got his opportunity to make a first impression and went 5-for-5 with a make from 55 yards out. Sauls has familiarity with his surroundings, but with a new long snapper, holder, and special teams staff in the building, his incumbency doesn’t amount to much. While Sanders will have to prove that he is back to his old self after a lengthy injury recovery. This battle could run to the end of the preseason, and it looks like every participant holds a decent shot at winning the job.