When John Harbaugh
was hired as New York Giants’ head coach, it figured that a makeover of the kicking game would follow. Harbaugh, after all, is a former special teams coach who has always emphasized that part of the game. The Giants’ kicking game in recent seasons has been lackluster.The Giants made Jordan Stout the game’s highest-paid punter, bringing one of the best in the league at that job from the Baltimore Ravens, Harbaugh’s former employer.
No surprise there.
The other two kicking-game specialist
roles belong to undrafted, with Dominic Zvada as the placekicker and Ben Mann as the long-snapper.
That could be considered a surprise.
Zvada won a competition with veteran Jason Sanders, who was released during the spring, and Ben Sauls, who was went 8 of 8 as the Giants’ placekicker at the end of last season.
After Casey Kreiter left for the Arizona Cardinals in free agency, the Giants signed Mann and journeyman Zach Triner. They quickly released Triner in the spring, and never brought in other competition for Mann.
Zvada appreciates Harbaugh’s trust.
“There’s a certain level of trust that he [Harbaugh] has,” Zvada said recently in the Giants’ locker room. “Obviously, bringing in two rookies, that’s how you have to go at it. But it also shows, at least from what I see, his knowledge of specialists.
“Ben’s done a great job. I think I’ve done a really good job. Obviously, Jordan’s been doing a really good job for the last few years. So, he seems confident in who he wants to bring in. I think we’re a great group, and we’re going to do really good this year.”
Zvada and Mann will be roommates this season. Mann said he finds it “amazing” that he gets to partner with Zvada.
“I’ve definitely thought about it, and I’m just so grateful for the opportunity because I definitely do think about it,” Mann said. “I think it’s amazing. There’s only so many rookies that start every year at these two positions, and for us to be here together is obviously a great thing. For the coaches to be putting that much trust in the players we are now and the players we’ll develop into really means a ton.”
Zvada added that it is “kind of nice going through it with somebody who’s in the same situation. I talked to some other guys around the league that were in my class. And they don’t have this sort of thing. So, it’s very nice to have this.”
Stout, a 2025 All-Pro who is in his fifth NFL season, revealed that Harbaugh and special teams coach Chris Horton, who had that role for 12 years in Baltimore, sought his input when sifting through placekicking and snapping specialists.
“Chris and Harbaugh were both extremely diligent with finding the right person,” Stout said. “They were talking to me through the whole process, asking me to look at specific guys and who do you like, who do you not like?
“Chris and Harbs have been with the best in the world. They’ve been with [placekicker] Justin Tucker, they’ve been with [long-snapper] Nick Moore, who’s an incredible long snapper. They had [punter] Sam Koch in Baltimore for 16 years. I mean, they know what greatness looks like. These guys, they were the best out there and they are really, really talented and it’s gonna be a lot of fun to play with them.”
Zvada ‘thankful’ for opportunity
Coming off a season at Michigan that was not the best of his four-year college career, Zvada just wanted a chance.
“Really, all I wanted was an opportunity and Coach Harbaugh gave me that opportunity,” Zvada said. “I was able to show up and do what I wanted to do, or do what I needed to do. Be able to prove myself and Coach Harbaugh gave me that opportunity.
So, I was really thankful for that. It’s worked out so far and I’m going to keep going with it.“
Zvada, 22, had two exceptional collegiate seasons, and two so-so seasons. He said his focus is “just getting better at being consistent.”
“I mean, for me, it’s all focused on this season,” Zvada said. “I think. I’ve done a good job so far and I think at the beginning of every year I want to lay out a plan of how I want to attack each part of the year. And so far, where I’m at, I’m very happy with how things have gone so far.
“It’s all about staying consistent. It’s all about going into the season with the momentum, having a good preseason, having a good camp, those sort of things. And those things start with having good momentum during the summer. So, it all kind of ties together.”
Horton said Zvada achieved the consistency he was looking for.
“Dom just showed consistency from the day he walked in,” Horton said. “There’s just been a lot of consistency, and going out there, and kicks being made, right? We started with the process. Again, we broke down everything, how he kicked, how he wanted the ball. We talked to (punter) Jordan (Stout) a lot about, like, let’s fine-tune these things to help him, to give him the best chance. Really, to give both guys the best opportunity, but since he’s walked in this building, he’s been very consistent.”
The swirling winds of the Meadowlands have given many placekickers fits. Zvada is confident he can figure them out.
“I played in the Big Ten. I don’t know how it is here, but I’ve played in elements before,” Zvada said. “Certainly, the practice field here in the Meadowlands is windy.
“For me, you know, it’s the same sort of thing with the yardages. I would go out there and I’d pretend the wind’s not even there. Unless it’s a side wind, then you’ve got to play it. But, I’m going to hit it the same way.”
Zvada made a handful of kicks beyon 60 yards during training camp. So, what is his range?
“I’ll say deep,” Zvada said. “That’s all I’ll say.”
Mann: ‘A complete dream come true’
No matter who else called, Mann was not saying no when an offer came from the Giants.
“Playing for the Giants is a complete dream come true,” Mann said. “Growing up in the Northeast, starting in Pennsylvania, going to school in Connecticut and then Boston .. it’s a team I kind of grew up rooting for.
“My grandfather [Chuck Mercein] was drafted here a long, long time ago. And if you told me I’d have an offer from all 32 teams, I think the Giants are the team I would choose. With everything that’s going on here, the opportunities, on and off the field, the new coaching staff, everything, there’s so many factors that would draw me to this team.”
Mann did not intend to make long-snapping a career. He was a tight end and defensive end in high school, as well a lacrosse and basketball player.
He went to Yale to play tight end, with snapping as a secondary skill.
Mann and his coaches quickly realized he was a better snapper than tight end, and soon enough that was all he was doing.
“It was funny, it was definitely a transition for me. Because when I first got to Yale, I committed, at least in my mind, as a tight end that kind of did long snapping on the side,” Mann said. “And I quickly found out I was better than I realized at long snapping.
“And once I was a starting long snapper, they took away my role as a tight end. And I wasn’t really practicing as much. I was standing on the sidelines doing my snaps, not playing scout offense. And it drove me wild for a while, because I went from a three-sport athlete, came in what I thought was a tight end, and then I kind of got, I fell into my role as a long snapper. And I was just out there restless.”
While it took time to accept and adjust to his new reality, Mann has ended up “grateful” for the decision.
“I definitely went back and forth with my coach about it, but I always knew they were doing what was best for me and what was best for the team,” Mann said. “And it drove me nuts, but they were right.
“So, I always thank them and I’m grateful for them.”
Mann finished his collegiate career at Boston College in 2025, and then landed with the Giants. When the Giants released Triner, Mann didn’t take for granted that the job was his.
“It was the opposite, really,” Mann said. “It was me versus another guy to me versus me, me versus what the coaches are showing me on film, what they wanted to see. I definitely never told myself that the job was secure.I always considered that I was on thin ice. I kept the pressure on because I didn’t want to get comfortable.”
Harbaugh and Horton ended up comfortable enough to ride with the rookie duo. We will see if they make that the right choice.
