Younghoe Koo has kicked at Philadelphia’s Lincoln Monetary Area earlier than.
He sank all three of his area purpose makes an attempt from 39, 22 and 34 yards, respectively. Then he drilled a 48-yard additional level within the ultimate minute of final season’s 22-21 Atlanta Falcons win over the Eagles in September 2024.
What actually issues is whether or not Joe Schoen, Brian Daboll and the Giants will give Koo the chance to do his job Sunday in South Philly.
It’s already incomprehensible that Koo, an NFL veteran, sat at house on the observe squad final week whereas Jude McAtamney missed two additional factors within the Giants’ 33-32 choke job loss to the Denver Broncos.
Now, even with Graham Gano (groin) working towards and eligible to return off injured reserve, going with Gano — who’s formally listed as questionable — appears like an excessive amount of of a threat given how his gameday accidents have compromised this group up to now.
First query: Did Koo kick poorly within the Giants’ observe competitors with McAtamney?
“I think I’ve kicked well,” Koo mentioned. “My swing feels good. I came here for the [free agent] workout [on Sept. 23], kicked great. It’s like, if I wasn’t kicking great, I don’t know why I would still be here, right?”
Second query: Why wasn’t Koo energetic for the Denver recreation?
“I think that’s coach’s decision,” Koo mentioned. “That’s manner above me, proper? I can simply go on the market and attempt to do my finest. I don’t really feel like I went on the market [in practice] and did carry out poorly or [anyone was] like, ‘He can’t do it, let’s get rid [of him].’ If I wasn’t doing my job, I really feel like they might get anyone else in right here.
“But what I was told,” Koo continued, “was Jude has been right here, he was right here final 12 months, and he has extra operation time, extra time with the blokes. So I used to be like, ‘Alright, that makes sense.’
Koo mentioned McAtamney had carried out properly in observe, too.
“And I think Jude has been kicking well in practice,” he added. “And it wasn’t like a crazy difference [between me and McAtamney] to be like alright one way or the other. So that’s kind of what it has been, and I’m just trying to focus on doing my best every day and see what happens, you know?”
So what now?
Daboll mentioned Wednesday that “if Graham’s ready to go, Graham will be the kicker.” And Gano mentioned “yes,” he is able to go Sunday. However having him energetic because the Giants’ solely kicker has a well-documented current historical past of being disastrous.
Even Daboll acknowledged Friday that activating each Gano and Koo for the sport is a chance if Gano isn’t 100%.
“If we need to do it, we’ll do it,” Daboll mentioned.
Gano was requested how he places followers’ issues apart in regards to the prospect of a brand new harm popping up.
“I don’t,” he mentioned. “I mean, I’m gonna play football. Yep.”
But when Gano isn’t utterly wholesome, it doesn’t make sense to decorate him for the sport in any respect.
Which means Koo could possibly be — ought to be — in line for an opportunity to kick for the Giants on Sunday.
“This league, you know how crazy it is,” he mentioned. “You try to do your best and see what happens. With last game, and Graham’s now coming back, so now it’s like alright just stay ready for whatever comes, you know?”
Daboll had a detailed eye on Koo throughout the open portion of Friday’s observe when Koo, Gano and McAtamney all have been on the sphere.
Koo shanked his first kickoff to the left, low and seemingly out of bounds. Daboll then walked up near Koo and stood near him, to Koo’s left, as he sailed a pleasant ball excessive within the air towards the tip zone on his second attempt.
Then Daboll walked in entrance of Koo, nonetheless behind the protection group, and watched a rep or two because the ball sailed over his head.
Particular groups coordinator Michael Ghobrial mentioned Koo has been doing sufficient at observe that it’s “consistent enough with having success on Sunday.”
Ghobrial additionally gave perception into why Koo’s acclimation course of won’t have occurred in a single day.
“He’s been here for the past few weeks, has gotten more comfortable with the operation of [holder] Jamie [Gillan] and [long snapper] Casey [Kreiter],” Ghobrial mentioned. “He understands how we do things here, has kind of worked on some nuances coming from Atlanta that would allow him to have more sustained and consistent success.”
These nuances, Koo mentioned, primarily are associated to the Giants’ most well-liked “operation” time on area targets — “every team’s kind of different with what they’re looking for” — and with the snapper and holder getting used to a brand new kicker’s “lean.”
Which means how Koo likes the soccer “leaned” on a area purpose maintain. Each kicker has his personal choice.
“Graham likes the lean a certain way. Jude likes the lean a certain way. We all have different leans,” Koo mentioned. “So if Jude puts the ball on a kicking stick and I try to kick that, I’m probably going to miss that or mishit it. Because I don’t put the ball that way.”
“So now Jamie has to learn what my lean is and get the repetition to get that lean right,” he continued. “Because if he gives my lean to Graham, he’s probably going to mishit that. Or you have to make an adjustment to hit that ball differently, because everybody has a different swing.”
Koo mentioned “from my experience, it does take a little time” to make that adjustment with a brand new group. Actually, he was part of a Falcons course of that was extra accelerated than this in 2019
“When I first signed with Atlanta, my first game was Week 9 and the punter was hurt,” he mentioned. “So it was the snapper, holder, kicker. Our third time kicking collectively was on the recreation. So I’ve been in that state of affairs like, ‘Alright, let’s see what occurs.’
“So I think this might be trying to avoid that part. So we have that time to build that consistent operation of Jamie learn[ing] my hold or the snap and operation time.”
All of that mentioned, what’s maddening about Koo not being the Giants kicker final week in Denver is how dependable he has been from beneath 40 yards and on additional factors throughout his eight NFL seasons.
Koo has made 175 of 182 additional factors in his profession, together with an ideal 26-of-26 final season and 2-of-2 in his Week 1 for the Falcons this September. And he has sunk 104 out of 108 area targets from inside 40 yards.
He’s 13 of 15 from inside 40 yards because the begin of the 2024 season, and he is an ideal 52 of 52 from beneath 30 yards in his profession.
“There’s a quote one coach put up for me that is, ‘You don’t rise to the occasion in pressure moments, you fall to the level of preparation,’” Koo mentioned. “So you just prep and practice. It’s the same kick every time, whether it’s a 60 yarder or a PAT.”
Koo has been inconsistent from distance in his profession.
He’s solely 48 of 63 on area targets between 40-49 yards since he entered the NFL in 2017 with the Chargers, together with a mixed 8 of 13 in 2024 and 2025. And he’s 29 of 40 from 50 yards or longer, together with 9 of 15 within the 2023 and 2024 seasons mixed.
And the Falcons lower him for lacking a recreation tying 43-yard area purpose try in Week 1 of this season towards the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
However he additionally has the clutch gene: He memorably sank a 40-yard area purpose as time at MetLife Stadium expired to beat the Giants, 17-14, within the notorious ‘Medium Pepsi’ recreation of 2021.
And he was the NFC particular groups participant of the week as just lately as Week 16 of the 2023 season for going 5-of-5 on area targets in a Falcons win over the Indianapolis Colts.
He tried to play via a hip harm final season in Atlanta, nevertheless, in order that hampered his efficiency after which his capacity to remain on the sphere.
That’s how he ended up getting his pink slip this fall. And he doesn’t harbor a grudge. He is aware of it comes down to creating and lacking kicks.
“If you take the emotions out of it, it’s a performance business,” Koo mentioned. “You gotta carry out. Final 12 months being damage, enjoying via the harm after which happening IR for the final three video games, lesson realized: don’t play via an harm, you recognize?
“So getting healthy was the main goal,” he mentioned of the offseason.
Koo misplaced about 15 kilos and “to get the inflammation out” and care for his physique. In any other case, his routine was the identical, so he was prepared for Atlanta to enter the 2025 season.
He simply missed an enormous kick in an enormous spot.
“I was good in like a month, had a full offseason, a great offseason OTAs and training camp, and then just missed at the wrong time,” he mentioned. “You don’t want to miss ever, but it just happened that way coming off not a good season, an injury and then I missed Week 1.”
“It was not a good time kind of thing, and I felt very good I could bounce back in Week 2, but I didn’t get that opportunity,” he added. “So once that happened, it was like, ‘I gotta go.’ You guys made that decision, so it was time to move on.”
So Koo returned to the world the place he was raised for his subsequent alternative. He was born in South Korea however moved to Ridgewood, N.J., in center college, a 25-minute shot north from East Rutherford.
And it’s attainable the Giants will profit quickly from his expertise in pressure-packed moments, the type that the inexperienced McAtamney wasn’t capable of deal with final Sunday in Denver.
“If anything, you just hone in more into what you have to do,” Koo mentioned of kicking in a loud and hostile surroundings. “People ask me, ‘How do you deal with the noise?’ That’s just white noise. If you’re worried about that, you’re worrying about the wrong stuff.”
“So as soon as I go out there, I’m thinking about my steps, my angle, my contact, the things I work on in practice,” he mentioned. “So when you get there, you just do the same thing back to the preparation you’re thinking about … If it’s a game winner or whatnot, you’re still swinging the same ball as if you would at a high school field by yourself.”
Initially Printed: October 24, 2025 at 2:44 PM EDT
