Jamie Gillan

Scottish-born American football player (born 1997)

American football player

Jamie Gillan

Gillan with the Cleveland Browns in 2019

No. 6 – New York Giants

Position:

Punter

Personal information

Born:

(1997-07-04) 4 July 1997 (age 26)
Forres, Scotland

Height:

6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)

Weight:

207 lb (94 kg)

Career information

High school:

Leonardtown High School (Leonardtown, Maryland)

College:

Arkansas–Pine Bluff

Undrafted:

2019

Career history

Cleveland Browns (2019–2021)
Buffalo Bills (2021)*
New York Giants (2022–present)

* Offseason and/or practice squad member only

Roster status:

Active

Career highlights and awards

PFWA All-Rookie Team (2019)
2x First-team All-SWAC (2017, 2018; punter)
First-team All-SWAC (2018; kicker)

Career NFL statistics as of Week 18, 2023

Punts:	325
Punt yards:	14,834
Punt average:	45.6
Inside 20:	118

Player stats at NFL.com · PFR

Jamie Gillan (born 4 July 1997), nicknamed the Scottish Hammer, is a Scottish professional American football punter for the New York Giants of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Arkansas–Pine Bluff.

Early years

Originally from Forres, Morayshire, Scotland, Gillan first played for Highland Rugby Club, before attending and playing rugby for Merchiston Castle School in Edinburgh. In 2013, he moved to Leonardtown, Maryland, where his father was stationed as a member of the Royal Air Force, and Gillan began playing American football in high school there.^[1] He then went on to play college football at Arkansas–Pine Bluff,^[2] receiving the scholarship offer through a Facebook invitation.^[3] Across his four years at Arkansas–Pine Bluff, Gillan had a total of 9,024 yards on 214 punts and average of 42.2 yards per punt.^[4] During a pre-draft workout, he reportedly popped three regulation-size NFL footballs.^[5]

Professional career

Pre-draft measurables
Height	Weight	Arm length	Hand span	Vertical jump	Broad jump	Bench press
6 ft 1+1⁄4 in (1.86 m)	207 lb (94 kg)	30+1⁄8 in (0.77 m)	8+7⁄8 in (0.23 m)	36.5 in (0.93 m)	9 ft 8 in (2.95 m)	23 reps
All values from Pro Day^[6]

Cleveland Browns

After going undrafted in the 2019 NFL Draft, Gillan signed with the Cleveland Browns.^[7] In the team's second 2019 preseason game against the Indianapolis Colts, Gillan blasted a 74-yard punt.^[8] On 31 August 2019, he was named the starting punter for the Browns over veteran Britton Colquitt.

In Week 2, Gillan punted six times, five landing inside the 20 with a long of 47 in a 23–3 win over the New York Jets, earning him AFC Special Teams Player of the Week. After having 11 punts inside the 20 and only allowing 19 punt return yards Gillan was named AFC Special Teams Player of the Month in September.^[9] In Week 5, Jamie Gillan punted 7 times for 397 yards including a 71-yard punt that set a career long for Gillan. Gillan ended his rookie season with 63 punts for 2,913 yards (2,622 net yards) with 28 punts downed inside the 20 yard line which earned him a spot on the Pro Football Writers Association All-Rookie team.

Gillan was placed on the reserve/COVID-19 list by the Browns on 30 July 2020,^[10] and activated from the list four days later.^[11]

Gillan was waived by the Browns on 22 December 2021.^[12]

Buffalo Bills

On 24 December 2021, Gillan was signed to the practice squad of the Buffalo Bills.^[13]

New York Giants

On 7 February 2022, the New York Giants signed Gillan to reserve/future contract and he became the lead contender to be the Giants' 2022 punter when the team released Riley Dixon in March.^[14]^[15] He kicked several field goals in a preseason game against the Bengals following an injury to Graham Gano,^[16] and made the 53 man roster.^[17]

On 12 December 2022, while playing in a game against the Philadelphia Eagles, Gillan was flagged for a rare illegal kick penalty. While attempting a punt, Gillan fumbled the snap and kicked the ball after it bounced off the ground. While drop kicks are legal in the National Football League during a field goal, officials decided Gillan's kick was illegal and levied a 10 yard "Illegal kick of the football" penalty against the Giants.^[18]

On 13 March 2023, Gillan signed a two-year, $4 million contract extension with the Giants.^[19] On 17 December, Gillian successfully kicked a 40–yard field goal against the New Orleans Saints, in relief for injured kicker Randy Bullock.^[20] In Week 18, Gillan punted five times with four inside the 20-yard line, in a 27-10 win over the Philadelphia Eagles, earning NFC Special Teams Player of the Week.^[21]

Personal life

Gillan is nicknamed "The Scottish Hammer."^[22]

Gillan originally came to the United States on a NATO visa through his father. This was never changed to a work visa when he joined the NFL. When he traveled to London to play in a game with the New York Giants in October 2022, the visa issue delayed his return to the United States, and U.S. diplomats had to intervene to update his visa.^[23]^[24]^[25]

References

^ D'Andrea, Christian (6 May 2019). "'Scottish Hammer' tells us all about his wild journey to the NFL". SBNation.com. Retrieved 4 June 2019.
^ "Jamie Gillan – Football". UA Pine Bluff Athletics. Retrieved 4 June 2019.
^ Grossi, Tony (4 May 2019). "The legend of the Scottish Hammer precedes punting prospect Jamie Gillan to Browns rookie camp". ESPN.com. Retrieved 4 June 2019.
^ Forbes, Greg (22 February 2019). "Path To The Draft: An Interview With The "Scottish Hammer" Jamie Gillan". Ninety-Nine Yards: American Football for UK fans. Retrieved 4 June 2019.
^ Withers, Tom (4 May 2019). "Great scot: Browns rookie punter has Scottish heritage". Yahoo! News. Retrieved 4 June 2019.
^ "2019 Draft Scout Jamie Gillan, Arkansas-Pine Bluff NFL Draft Scout College Football Profile". draftscout.com. Retrieved 31 October 2022.
^ "#NFLGOLDENLION: Jamie Gillan Signs with Cleveland Browns as Undrafted Free Agent". UA Pine Bluff Athletics. Retrieved 4 June 2019.
^ "Gillan Drills 74-Yard Punt In Browns' Preseason Win". UA Pine Bluff Athletics. 17 August 2019. Retrieved 18 August 2019.
^ "Patrick Mahomes, Russell Wilson among Players of the Week". NFL.com. 18 September 2019. Retrieved 1 October 2019.
^ "Browns place P Jamie Gillan on Reserve/COVID-19 list". ClevelandBrowns.com. 30 July 2020. Retrieved 30 July 2020.
^ "Browns make roster moves". ClevelandBrowns.com. 3 August 2020. Retrieved 3 August 2020.
^ "Browns activate TE Austin Hooper, LB Jacob Phillips and make other roster moves". ClevelandBrowns.com. 22 December 2021.
^ Jenkins, Chris (24 December 2021). "Bills elevate WR Isaiah Hodgins and OL Bobby Hart for Bills at Patriots | Week 16". BuffaloBills.com. Retrieved 29 January 2023.
^ Hickey, Kevin (7 February 2022). "Giants sign QB Davis Webb, P Jamie Gillan to futures contracts". Giants Wire. Retrieved 29 January 2023.
^ Eisen, Michael (11 March 2022). "Giants release veteran punter Riley Dixon". Giants.com. Retrieved 19 September 2022.
^ Traina, Patricia (23 August 2022). "Giants Could Bring in Another Kicker While Graham Gano is Sidelined". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved 19 September 2022.
^ Salomone, Dan (31 August 2022). "How the roster was built: Notes & competitions won". Giants.com. Retrieved 19 September 2022.
^ Breech, John (11 December 2022). "Giants punter gets flagged for bizarre penalty in same game where Eagles punter pulls off crazy play". CBSSports.com. Retrieved 12 December 2022.
^ Eisen, Michael (14 March 2023). "Notebook: Giants bring back 2022 kicking battery". Giants.com.
^ "Giants punter Jamie Gillan nails 40-yard field goal". touchdownwire.usatoday.com. Retrieved 30 January 2024.
^ Gordon, Grant (10 January 2024). "Texans QB C.J. Stroud, Packers QB Jordan Love highlight Players of the Week". NFL.com.
^ Stubbs, Roman (22 September 2019). "The Scottish Hammer: How Jamie Gillan went from Scotland to an HBCU to Browns rookie standout". Washington Post. Retrieved 1 October 2019.
^ Raanan, Jordan (11 October 2022). "Sources: Giants punter not yet back from London". ESPN.com. Retrieved 12 October 2022.
^ Dajani, Jordan (13 October 2022). "Giants punter Jamie Gillan back with team after being stuck in London due to passport issues, per report". CBSSports.com. Retrieved 13 October 2022.
^ "Giants punter Gillan resolves visa issue, leaves London". AP News. 11 October 2022. Retrieved 11 November 2022.