Giants’ ST coach Thomas McGaughey: Leap over snapper by Jets should have been penalized

New York Giants special teams coordinator Thomas McGaughey said on Thursday that the New York Jets should have been penalized for an illegal formation when Giants’ placekicker Graham Gano missed a 35-yard field goal with :28 left in Sunday’s 13-10 overtime victory by the Jets.

“It was an illegal play,” McGaughey said. “You can’t cover the center and he was covering the center ... if you align inside the framework of the center, that’s illegal formation, can’t do that. So, you have to be completely outside of the framework of the center.”

Players are allowed to jump the snapper, provided they do not make contact with him. What they are not allowed to do is line up in front of the snapper. McGaughey’s contention is that since Will McDonald (99) was lined up over snapper Casey Kreiter’s left shoulder, partially over him, that the alignment was illegal and should have been flagged.

Since it was fourth-and-1, a penalty would have given the Giants a first down and effectively ended the game as the Jets had no timeouts.

Instead, the Jets drove for a game-tying field goal and won the game in overtime.

Head coach Brian Daboll was asked Thursday if he had heard from the league on the play:

“I’ll keep that private,” Daboll said.

Gano said after the game that the leap by McDonald did not impact him.

“I didn’t see it,” Gano said. “I don’t see anything. I know what the rule is, you can’t make contact with anybody. I didn’t see that at all.”