TheNew York Giants continued their overhaul of the kicking battery by adding former Miami Dolphins kicker Jason Sanders on a one-year deal.
Sanders, 5-foot-11 and 195 pounds, did not kick last season because he was on injured reserve with a hip injury suffered during training camp. He was released by Miami on March 6, thus becoming a free agent.
Prior to his release, the 30-year-old Sanders, who has been in the league since 2018 (all with Miami), had appeared in 116 games, never missing a game due to injury until last season. He has made 187 of 221 field goal attempts (84.6%) and 259 of 268 XPT attempts (96.6%).
His career long is 57 yards, which he hit twice, once in 2023 and once in 2024. His best season came in 2020, when he earned first-team All-Pro honors after converting a career-best 92.3% of his field goal attempts and 100% of his XPTs.
Sanders finished as the league's scoring co-leader, tying with fellow kicker (and one-time Giant) Younghoe Koo and Raiders Daniel Carlson that season.
Sanders is 55-of-70 on field goals between 40-49 yards, and 33-of-48 on field goals of 50+ yards. He also has 574 career kickoffs with a 74.4% touchback percentage and an average of 63 yards per kickoff attempt.
Sanders, who played his college ball at New Mexico, was a seventh round draft pick by Miami in 2018, No. 229 overall. He lost his job to veteran Zane Gonzalez, who signed a one-year deal on March 10, 2026.
The Giants are expected to move on from incumbent Graham Gano, who was on injured reserve twice last year, the second time with a neck injury that necessitated season-ending surgery. The move, once official, will save the Giants $4.5 million against their cap.
Sanders will compete with Ben Sauls, who is signed through the 2026 season at a rate of just over $1 million, for the team’s kicking job.
Sauls, a left-footed kicker who played his college ball at the University of Pittsburgh, appeared in three games for the Giants at the end of last season and made all eight of his field goal tries, including a long of 45 yards, and all seven of his XPTs.
Sauls, on 10 kickoffs, hit five touchbacks for a 50% rate, with his average kickoff travelling 59 yards.
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