As surely every New York Giants fan knows at this point, John Harbaugh knows a thing or two about special teams.
It’s how he earned his first head coaching gig with the Baltimore Ravens, coaching Andy Reid’s special teams unit with the Philadelphia Eagles to near perfection.
It only made sense that Harbaugh would ensure that special teams was as good a unit as possible when he took the job in New York, and he made sure of that by hand-picking his kicker of the future, Dominic Zvada.
Despite an incredibly strong summer and start to the 2026 season, Zvada was shaky at best in the weeks leading up to the Giants’ bye week, and there was some chatter that Big Blue would bring in another kicker to compete with the rookie.
It seems Harbaugh is putting all his faith in the former Michigan standout.
John Harbaugh Gives Dominic Zvada a Vote of Confidence
At his Wednesday press conference, Harbaugh was asked about his confidence in the New York Giants’ kicker, despite some shaky outings as of late.
Specifically, what he was looking to see from Zvada on Sunday against the Philadelphia Eagles.
“Well, yeah, we’re looking for kicks to go between the sticks, right through the upright, straight, looking for straight kicks,” Harbaugh joked. “But you’re also looking at the technique and the fundamentals. But we’re not worried about him. Now, we’ll be disappointed if he misses a kick or two. We’ll be really happy if he makes them.”
John Harbaugh talks about his confidence in kicker Dominic Zvada:
“But we also believe in him. We believe in who he is. We believe in his talent, his work ethic, and his head. We really think he’s made of the right stuff. Over the long haul, he’s gotta do it; he’s gotta prove it. There’s no doubt about that. But we’re of the belief that he’s gonna be a long-term answer for us. And let’s go, let’s go make some kicks and go win a game; that’s the mindset.”
If you’re Zvada, who certainly has been shaky over the last few games, it was probably nice to hear this vote of confidence from the head coach.
In order to get back on track, he’ll need his confidence to be as high as possible.
How Can the Giants Help Dominic Zvada?
It’s hard to say exactly what will get a kicker out of a slump, but former New York Giants kicker Lawrence Tynes had an idea last week, suggesting the team stop trotting him out for extremely long attempts.
“Only thing I would change is stop putting him out there for 55+ yd FG’s unless it is end of game of or end of half situation for the time being. He needs to keep building his confidence and missing from any distance dents that along with the media scrutiny,” wrote Tynes in a post on X.
“I am a huge fan of this young man. We cannot make the mistake of letting him out the building like we did with future Hall of Famer Chris Boswell PIT in 2015. Patience is required. Go Big Blue!”
Like a shooter in basketball, it feels like Zvada just has to see a few go down before he gets back on track.
We’ll see how he performs against the Eagles on Sunday.
Giants’ John Harbaugh Sends Message to Struggling Dominic Zvada