The Giants may have found a real weapon in an undrafted rookie, and his name is Dominic Zvada.
On Sunday in a 12-7 win over the Tennessee Titans, Zvada accounted for every point New York put on the board. He was perfect on all four of his field goal tries, with a long of 39 yards, while the offense never found the end zone.
That kind of night has become the early story of his NFL career. Zvada has yet to miss a kick, going 6-for-6 on field goals through his first three games. For a team sitting near the bottom of the league in scoring, that makes the rookie the most reliable source of points on the roster.
The Giants did not score an offensive touchdown against Tennessee. Jameis Winston went 14 of 22 for 118 yards and was sacked three times, while New York leaned on 33 rushing attempts to help control field position. Whenever a drive bogged down, Zvada was there to clean it up.
That has been the pattern around him, too. The Giants rank 28th in scoring at 15.3 points per game and 30th in total offense at 278 yards per game, per NFL.com. Even with that kind of production, they are 2-1, and the kicking game has played a real part in that start.
Zvada’s rise has been quick. He went undrafted in April and signed with the Giants as a free agent on April 25. He later won the starting job in training camp over Ben Sauls, with head coach John Harbaugh announcing that decision in late August.
His college track record suggested this could happen. At Michigan in 2024, Zvada made 21 of 22 field goals, a 95.5% success rate that earned him first-team All-American honors and Big Ten Kicker of the Year. So far, that accuracy has carried over without a hitch.
The Giants have also gotten value out of the contract itself. Zvada is playing on a minimum-salary undrafted deal, the least expensive type of contract a team can carry. For an offense that has produced 28th-ranked scoring after major investment, that kind of production for almost nothing is a huge help.
Against Tennessee, New York turned four stalled drives into 12 points, and that was enough because the defense held up. A kicker won’t solve an offense that ranks 30th in yards, but Zvada has made sure the Giants cash in when they get into scoring range.
There is still a long way to go. Zvada has not tried a 50-yarder yet, and he has not had to deal with the wind and cold that come later in the season in the NFC East. Three games is a small sample, and kickers can go cold just as fast as they get hot.
For now, though, the Giants have gotten exactly what they could have hoped for from a player they signed for nothing: perfect kicking, steady points, and an undrafted rookie making a real difference.
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