EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. – Graham Gano is the rare professional athlete playing superbly in the nation's largest media market in relative anonymity. But that is beginning to change.
The first-year Giant has been one of the NFL's best kickers this season and was today named the NFC Special Teams Player of the Week for his contributions to the team's 23-20 victory against the Washington Football Team Sunday in FedExField.
Gano kicked field goals of 38, 48 and 42 yards as the Giants completed a season sweep of Washington. Three of his six kickoffs were touchbacks.
It was the fourth time this season and the 40th time in his 11-year career he kicked at least three field goals in a game.
Gano missed the entire 2019 season after undergoing surgery to repair a knee injury he suffered the previous year playing for the Carolina Panthers. He has returned to have one of his finest seasons. Gano has missed only one of his 33 attempts, a 57-yard field goal try in Chicago on Sept. 20. He has made 19 of 20 field goal attempts and all 13 extra point tries.
Gano's .995 percentage on field goals is a career-best and is ranked second of the seven kickers with 20 or more attempts; Atlanta's Younghoe Koo is at .955 (21 of 22).
With 70 points, Gano is tied with Indianapolis' Rodrigo Blankenship for 11th in scoring among kickers.
View photos of Giants kicker Graham Gano in action
Riley Dixon (9), Graham Gano (5)
New York Giants kicker Graham Gano (5) practicing before the start of an NFL football game against the Washington Football Team, Sunday, Nov. 8, 2020, in Landover, Md. (AP Photo/Al Drago)
New York Giants place kicker Graham Gano (5) celebrates during an NFL game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Monday, Nov. 02, 2020, in East Rutherford, N.J. The Buccaneers beat the Giants 25-23. (Cooper Neill via AP)
New York Giants Riley Dixon (9) holds as New York Giants kicker Graham Gano (5) attempts a field goal during the first half of an NFL football game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Monday, Nov. 2, 2020, in East Rutherford, N.J. (AP Photo/Corey Sipkin)
New York Giants kicker Graham Gano (5) stretches before an NFL football game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Monday, Nov. 2, 2020 in East Rutherford, N.J. The Buccaneers defeated the Giants 25-23. (Damian Strohmeyer via AP)
New York Giants kicker Graham Gano (5) kicks a field goal as punter Riley Dixon (9) holds during warm ups prior to an NFL football game against the Philadelphia Eagles, Thursday, Oct. 22, 2020, in Philadelphia. The Eagles defeated the Giants 22-21. (Perry Knotts via AP)
New York Giants kicker Graham Gano (5) kicks the football for a field goal as punter Riley Dixon (9) holds during the NFL game against the Chicago Bears, Sunday, Sept. 20, 2020, in Chicago. The Bears defeated the Giants 17-13. (Scott Boehm via AP)
New York Giants' Graham Gano (5) kicks off during an NFL football game against the Philadelphia Eagles, Thursday, Oct. 22, 2020, in Philadelphia. The Eagles defeated the Giants 22-21. (AP Photo/Rich Schultz)
New York Giants place kicker Graham Gano (5) kicks a field goal during a NFL football game against the Washington Football Team Sunday Oct. 18, 2020 in East Rutherford, New Jersey (Evan Pinkus via AP)
New York Giants place kicker Graham Gano (5) kicks off during a week 8 regular season Monday Night football game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at MetLife Stadium on November 2nd, 2020 in East Rutherford, New Jersey
New York Giants place kicker Graham Gano (5) kicks off during a NFL football game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers Monday Nov. 2, 2020 in East Rutherford, New Jersey (Evan Pinkus via AP)
New York Giants kicker Graham Gano (5) kicks the ball in warm ups prior to an NFL football game against the Los Angeles Rams, Sunday, Oct. 4, 2020, in Inglewood, Calif. Rams won 17-9. (Ben Liebenberg via AP)
New York Giants kicker Graham Gano (5) kicks a field goal during an NFL football game against the Dallas Cowboys, Sunday, Oct. 11, 2020, in Arlington, Texas. The Cowboys defeated the Giants, 37-34. (James D. Smith via AP)
New York Giants punter Riley Dixon (9) holds the ball for place kicker Graham Gano (5) during an NFL game against the Dallas Cowboys, Sunday, Oct. 11, 2020, in Arlington, Texas. The Cowboys beat the Giants 37-34. (Cooper Neill via AP)
New York Giants kicker Graham Gano (6) during a training camp practice at Quest Diagnostics Training Center on Wednesday August 19, 2020 in East Rutherford, New Jersey
New York Giants' Riley Dixon (9) and Graham Gano (5) celebrate a field goal kicked by Gano as tight end Evan Engram (88) looks on in the first half of an NFL football game against the Dallas Cowboys in Arlington, Texas, Sunday, Oct. 11, 2020. (AP Photo/Michael Ainsworth)
New York Giants kicker Graham Gano (6) during a training camp practice at Quest Diagnostics Training Center on Wednesday August 19, 2020 in East Rutherford, New Jersey
New York Giants place kicker Graham Gano (5) celebrates kicking a field goal as punter Riley Dixon (9) stands by in the second half of an NFL football game against the Dallas Cowboys in Arlington, Texas, Sunday, Oct. 11, 2020. (AP Photo/Michael Ainsworth)
Riley Dixon (9), Graham Gano (5)
New York Giants kicker Graham Gano (6) kicks a field goal during a training camp practice at Quest Diagnostics Training Center on Friday August 21, 2020 in East Rutherford, New Jersey
New York Giants Kicker Graham Gano (6) during a training camp scrimmage at Met Life Stadium on Friday August 28, 2020 in East Rutherford, New Jersey
Riley Dixon (9), Graham Gano (5)
New York Giants place kicker Graham Gano (5) warms up before a week 1 regular season Monday Night football game against the Pittsburgh Steelers at MetLife Stadium on September 13th, 2020 in East Rutherford, New Jersey
Graham Gano (5)
Graham Gano (5), Riley Dixon (9)
Riley Dixon (9), Graham Gano (5)
Riley Dixon (9), Graham Gano (5)
Riley Dixon (9), Graham Gano (5)
Riley Dixon (9), Graham Gano (5)
New York Giants place kicker Graham Gano (5) kicks a field goal during a week 6 regular season football game against the Washington Football Team at MetLife Stadium on October 18th, 2020 in East Rutherford, New Jersey
Graham Gano (5)
Riley Dixon (9), Graham Gano (5)
New York Giants place kicker Graham Gano (5) kicks a PAT during a week 8 regular season Monday Night football game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at MetLife Stadium on November 2nd, 2020 in East Rutherford, New Jersey
Gano has made 18 consecutive field goal attempts since his long kick in Soldier Field missed wide left, tying him with Seattle's Jason Myers for the NFL's third-longest active streak, behind Pittsburgh's Chris Boswell (22) and Miami's Jason Sanders (20).
Gano's streak is the third-longest in Giants history, behind Josh Brown (29 in a row from 2014-15) and Aldrick Rosas (20 from 2018-19).
The current streak is the second-longest of Gano's career. He made 28 attempts in a row when he was with the Panthers in 2017-18.
On Oct. 11 in Dallas, Gano set a Giants' record with three field goals of 50 or more yards. That gave him four long field goals for the year, tying the franchise's single-season record.
In a career that began with three seasons in Washington and included seven seasons in Carolina, Gano has made 243 of 293 field goal attempts (82.9%) and 319 of 334 PATs for 1,048 points.
Gano is the first Giants player to receive a Player of the Week award this season. He is the first to be named Special Teams Player of the Week since Rosas was honored in Week 13 of the 2018 season.
This is the 30th time a Giants player has received the special teams award since it was instituted in 1984.
Gano has been named Player of the Week with each team he's played for: 2010, Week 16 with Washington; 2018, Week 5 with the Panthers; and now his first with the Giants.
He was also named the NFC Special Teams Player of the Month in November 2015 and October 2018.
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