It's been tough sledding for the New York Giants. They'd lost two of their last three games heading into Sunday, and the game they didn't lose was a tie last week. As they continue to cling onto a potential playoff spot in the NFC, they had their recent struggles encapsulated in a punt from Jamie Gillan against the Eagles this week.
Gillan took the snap and never seemed to quite get a hold of it. When he went to kick it, it flew past his foot. Rather than picking it up and trying to run with it or falling on it, Gillan dug it out of the turf and punted it. It didn't go far, but to Gillan's mind, it was better than the alternative.
Above all else, it just looked wrong.
Gillan was penalized for illegal touching on the kick, and the Eagles got the ball on the Giants' 33-yard line. A.J. Brown would score on the next play.
This Giants punt was ... unique 😅pic.twitter.com/rz0dKQl3K2
— 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐒𝐩𝐨𝐫𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐍𝐞𝐰𝐬 (@sportingnews) December 11, 2022
Although dropkicks on their own are legal, and Gillan was within the rules to do what he did, the Giants were out of position with the gunners illegally downfield, hence the penalty.
What is the dropkick rule?
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According to the NFL rulebook, a dropkick is "a kick by a player who drops the ball and kicks it as, or immediately after, it touches the ground."
The alternative mode of kicking is allowed in any form of kick, whether it be field goals, punts, or kickoffs.
The dropkick then assumes the mode of kick it's emulating, which is why if the Giants hadn't been flagged the ball would have been placed where it was downed.
Doug Flutie's dropkick vs. Dolphins
The most famous dropkick in the NFL's history is likely Doug Flutie's 2006 dropkick in Week 17 against the Dolphins.
In the fourth quarter, the Patriots scored to make it 25-19. Following that, Flutie took the field in what looked like a quirky two-point attempt. Instead, Flutie lined up well back of the center and dropkicked it through the uprights to make it 25-20.
Drop kick Flutie!
— New England Patriots (@Patriots) December 26, 2019
Throwing it back to the time @DougFlutie converted a drop kick vs. Miami in 2006. pic.twitter.com/C9ieyoxesE
For the Eagles, Jeff Feagles did a variation of Gillan's punt in 1990. With the snap landing in the turf, Feagles dug it out of the grass and kicked it to the Dolphins' 43-yard line.
You make the call, on this day in 1990:
— Quirky Research (@QuirkyResearch) December 9, 2020
The Eagles are punting on 4th & 1 from their own 34. The snap is bad, but the quick-thinking punter kicks the ball off the ground without ever picking it up. An Eagle downs it on the Dolphins 43.
Where does the next play begin? pic.twitter.com/3c0I04n17L
Though Gillan was ultimately penalized, the thought was pure. The Giants, for their part, clearly have a lot to figure out down the stretch this season with the Seahawks breathing down their necks in the NFC playoff picture. Although this was a fluke, it seems like New York and Brian Daboll have bigger problems.
