No. 6 and the New York Giants Player Who Wore It Best

Punter Jamie Gillan, known as the “Scottish Hammer” because of his strong leg and having been born in the United Kingdom, has significantly improved his ball placement and consistency while helping to tilt the field for the Giants over the past two seasons.

Over his three-year tenure in New York, Gillan owns a franchise-record 40.9-yard career net punting average. (Note: The NFL began keeping this as an official statistic in 1976.)

He also holds the team’s single-season record with a 42.3-yard net average in 2023, and his 74-yard punt against New England in 2023 is tied for the second-longest in team history.

The Giants signed Gillan to a reserve/future contract in February 2022. He had been set free from a pit stop on Buffalo’s practice squad after Cleveland waived him near the close of the 2021 season, ending his three-year stay.

Gillan originally signed with the Browns in 2019 as an undrafted rookie free agent out of Arkansas-Pine Bluff.

He punted 63 times for a 46.2-yard average with 28 punts inside the 20 and was voted to the NFL’s All-Rookie team by the Pro Football Writers Association.

During his first season with the Giants, Gillan averaged a career-high 46.8 yards per punt with 26 inside the 20 (35.1%), but also hit nine touchbacks - also a career-high at 12.2%.

In 2023, he averaged 46.0 yards with a team-record 35 punts inside the 20 (36.8%) and just four touchbacks (4.2%). 

He was named NFC Special Teams Player of the Week in the season finale win over Philadelphia – he dropped four of his five punts inside the 20 for a net average of 44.0 yards on a gross average of 46.5.

A hamstring injury caused Gillan to miss four games last season, but he continued to refine his punting. He finished with an average of 43.7 with 27 punts inside the 20 (48.2%) and only two touchbacks (3.6%).

Gillan has worn No. 6 for the past three seasons, making him the first Giants player to use the number since punter Matt Dodge in 2010 and only the second since punter Joe Prokop in 1992.

Who’s Wearing It Now?

Rookie quarterback Jaxson Dart, who was taken out of Ole Miss with the 25th overall pick in this year’s NFL Draft, also wore the number during the off-season program. The Giants moved up from 34th by sending a second and third-round pick, along with a 2026 third-round selection, to Houston. 

Dart began his college career with one season at USC, then became a three-year starter for the Runnin’ Rebels.

Last season, he led the SEC with a 69.3 completion mark and 4,279 passing yards, to go with 29 touchdown passes and six interceptions while running for 495 yards and three touchdowns on 124 carries.

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