It's been a humbling season for Younghoe Koo, and Tuesday afternoon was the tip of the iceberg for the ex-Atlanta Falcons' kicker. After Atlanta released him, he landed in New York. where the viral moment of him getting his cleat stuck in the Gillette Stadium turf was indicative of how his year has gone.
After the 31-year-old missed two field goal attempts in the Giants' 29-21 loss to the Washington Commanders, Big Blue opted to release Koo after making a waiver claim. And after Koo missed a game-tying field goal for the Falcons in Week 1, it proved his clutch gene has officially vanished.
The Giants waived kicker Younghoe Koo.
— Tom Pelissero (@TomPelissero) December 16, 2025
Koo was one of the best kickers in the NFL just a few seasons ago, but the fall from grace has been stark. For a player who made the Pro Bowl back in 2020, it seems like his career is coming to a close, since kicker-needy teams aren't exactly racing to the phone to pick up an aging, mediocre kicker.
Younghoe Koo was just released by his second NFL team this season
Koo made a career-low 73.5% of his field goal attempts last season, but 2025 has been even worse. He lost a kicker battle to Jude McAtamney in New York and couldn't even fend off a 38-year-old Graham Gano before getting a second shot this season. And once he got it, he failed to capitalize.
Now, the Giants are turning to another ex-Falcon in his stead. Undrafted rookie Ben Sauls spent a month on the Dirty Birds' practice squad backing up Parker Romo, and since he's the only kicker on New York's practice squad, it's expected that he'll receive the kicking opportunities to end the season.
The 24-year-old spent time in both Atlanta and Pittsburgh and has never attempted a field goal in his career, so the fact that this is the guy replacing the Georgia Southern product is sad. Five years ago, he was as reliable as they come, but he might not even be worth rostering at this stage of his career.
After the Falcons let him go, Romo turned out to be a massive flop, but Zane Gonzalez is showing shades of what Koo used to be a few years back. He even managed to win NFC Special Teams Player of the Week a few weeks ago.
Kicker is one of the most volatile positions in professional sports and all it takes is one bad game or a few costly missed kicks to enforce a change. And considering how replaceable kickers are, another rough stretch could make it difficult for a former beloved Falcon to continue his NFL career.