Why the Giants Should Target Jordan Stout to Fix Their Special Teams Problem
If the New York Giants are serious about turning the page under new head coach John Harbaugh, they can’t afford to ignore special teams - especially the punting game. It’s one of those areas that rarely grabs headlines, but consistently shapes outcomes. And in recent years, the Giants have been losing that hidden yardage battle far too often.
Harbaugh, a former special teams coordinator himself, knows better than most how crucial that phase of the game can be. So with free agency looming, there’s a name that makes all the sense in the world for New York: Jordan Stout.
Stout Is the Field-Flipping Weapon the Giants Need
Jordan Stout is coming off a breakout 2025 season with the Baltimore Ravens - a campaign that earned him First-Team All-Pro honors and a Pro Bowl nod. Simply put, he was one of the best punters in football last year, and the numbers back it up.
Stout averaged a booming 50.1 yards per punt - a career high and good for third in the NFL. But it’s his net average that really jumps off the page: 44.9 yards, the best mark in the league among punters with at least 10 starts.
That’s not just a stat - that’s a difference-maker. Over the course of a season, a four- to five-yard advantage in net average per punt is like gifting your defense an extra first down every time your special teams unit takes the field.
And it’s not just about distance. Stout pinned opponents inside the 20-yard line 24 times, with a 45.3% rate that ranked ninth in the league.
He also kept touchbacks to a minimum - just six all year - showing that he’s not just a big leg, but a smart, controlled one. His season-long punt of 74 yards?
That’s the kind of field-flipping bomb that changes momentum in a heartbeat.
For a Giants team that has struggled to contain returners and often found itself losing the field position battle, a punter like Stout could be a game-changer.
The Current Situation: Gillan’s Inconsistency Remains a Problem
Jamie Gillan, affectionately known as “The Scottish Hammer,” has been the Giants’ punter for the past few seasons. And while he earned a three-year extension in March 2025, his performance hasn’t matched the investment.
Gillan’s 2025 numbers tell the story. A gross average of 44.5 yards per punt placed him 23rd in the league, while his net average of 38.0 yards ranked 30th.
That’s a massive gap from Stout’s 44.9 net - nearly seven yards per punt. Over the course of a season, that’s hundreds of yards of field position lost.
He also ranked 30th in punts inside the 20, managing just 17. While his touchback numbers were decent (four total), the lack of hang time and directional control often left his coverage unit exposed. It’s not that Gillan has been terrible - it’s that he hasn’t been consistent enough to help the Giants win close games.
Stout vs. Gillan: A Clear Contrast in Performance
What separates Stout from Gillan isn’t just the stats - it’s the trajectory. Stout improved his net average from 41.2 yards in 2024 to 44.9 in 2025, showing growth and refinement as he enters his prime. He’s booming punts without outkicking his coverage, keeping returners in check while still flipping the field.
Gillan, meanwhile, has hovered around average. And in a league where field position is often the difference between a win and a loss, average doesn’t cut it. Especially not for a team like the Giants, who’ve leaned heavily on their defense to keep games close.
The Cap Math Works - and the Value Is Clear
Financially, the Giants have a path to make this move. There’s an out in Gillan’s contract that would free up over $1.1 million in cap space if the team moves on before June 1, though it would come with about $2.1 million in dead money. Still, in the context of a $295 million salary cap, that’s a manageable hit - especially when the upgrade is this significant.
Stout made $1.1 million in base salary last season, but after his All-Pro campaign, he’s expected to command somewhere between $3 million and $4 million annually. That may sound like a lot for a punter, but elite specialists are worth every penny when they can consistently change field position and take pressure off the defense.
Think of it this way: the Giants wouldn’t blink at paying a rotational edge rusher $4 million to play 30% of the snaps. Why not invest in a punter who impacts every game and helps every unit - defense, special teams, and even the offense by setting up better field position?
A Harbaugh-Type Move
This is exactly the kind of move you’d expect from a coach like John Harbaugh. He’s built his career on attention to detail and winning the little battles that add up to big wins.
In Baltimore, he worked with Stout - so the familiarity is there. And if Harbaugh is looking to set a new tone in New York, upgrading special teams is a logical first step.
General manager Joe Schoen has talked about building a team that competes in all three phases. Signing Stout would be putting action behind those words.
Bottom Line
Jordan Stout isn’t just a punter - he’s a field-position weapon. He’s the kind of player who can quietly swing games by 10, 15, even 20 yards at a time. And for a Giants team that has struggled to find consistency in the third phase, he represents a clear, measurable upgrade.
If the Giants are serious about contending - not just surviving - in 2026, this is a move they need to make. The margins in the NFL are razor-thin. And in the game of inches, Jordan Stout gives the Giants the extra yards they’ve been missing.