Where Giants Punter Jamie Gillan Needs to Improve the Most
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Jamie Gillan, Punter
Height: 6-foot-1 | Weight: 207 pounds
2022 Stats: GP 17, Punts: 74, Yards: 3,463. Gross Avg. 46.8, Net: 40.2. Long: 69, TBs: 9, In20: 26, Blocked: 1
Ask any NFL special teams coach what he'd desire most in a punter, and chances are he'll tell you he'd give up a paycheck or two to have a big left-footed leg on his side.
That's exactly what the Giants have in punter Jamie Gillan. Nicknamed the Scottish Hammer thanks to his Scottish heritage, Gillan has a big leg and just so happens to be a leftie. Those two traits alone helped Gillan earn a two-year, $4 million contract from the Giants.
Gillan began his NFL career in Cleveland in 2019, where he looked like he'd be a mainstay. He earned all-rookie team honors in 2019 and didn't miss a game until 2021 when he landed on the COVID list.
Meanwhile, the Browns decided to move on from Gillan, going with one-time Chiefs punter Dustin Colquitt. Gillan, in part, made the decision easy for the Browns as after his impressive rookie campaign, his net average touchbacks and In20 numbers all dropped significantly, leaving the Browns to think they'd be in for brighter skies going in a different direction.
Gillan landed with the Bills' practice squad two days after being waived by the Browns. And when Joe Schoen and Brian Daboll made their way from Buffalo to East Rutherford, Gillan was one of the guys that came with them from the Bills.
The Giants brass had so much confidence in Gillan that they didn't bother bringing in anyone to challenge him, instead allowing the young punter to get as many reps as possible to work out any bugs in his game.
But in getting back to what NFL special teams coaches want in their punters, consistency is one critical factor that trumps all else. That's where Gillan falls short. Yes, his coverage unit was spotty--a punter can execute the best kicks in the world, but if his gunners don't get down the field to make a play, that's not the punter's fault.
And Gillan, unfortunately, didn't have consistently good gunner play last year, let alone a consistent pair of gunners. That said, there was a handful of shanked punts where Gillan's form looked out of whack, and that's what this team is counting on him to straighten out moving forward.
Best Case Scenario
The best-case scenario is for Gillan to gain better control of his pooch punts, which were often a disaster. The pooch punts help pin an opponent deep inside their territory, and if there was one aspect of Gillan's game that was maddening, this was it.
Again, better gunner play will help, but Gillan has to do his part by not kicking the heck out of the ball so that the gunners can get down the field before the ball does.
Worst Case Scenario
Punters are probably among the easiest players on a roster to replace. Gillan has a modest $1.6 million cap hit, so if he did not work out for them, the Giants could move on from him.
Whether the Giants could find someone with a big leg that is also a leftie and who could work well as the holder for kicker Graham Gano is another story and probably one the Giants don't even want to think about once the season begins.
What to Expect in 2023
The fact that the Giants weren't so discouraged by GIllan's inconsistency, nor did they bring in competition for him for this summer, speaks volumes about how they view him. Big, left-footed legs are rare, and when you have one, they can be a weapon simply thanks to how the ball comes off the foot.
Gillan also improved throughout last year as a holder for place-kicks, a very underrated part of his contributions. But at the end of the day, Gillan needs to take the adventure out of his punt, go out there, and deliver consistently on punt after punt, which, if he does, will see him rise from the lower third league-wide in almost every punting category.
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