Giants kicker Graham Gano: Panthers doctors misdiagnosed career-threatening injury

NEW YORK — Graham Gano is thankful that the Carolina Panthers signed him in 2012 after Washington cut him. But the Giants’ kicker didn’t appreciate how his tenure in Charlotte ended.

“It was frustrating,” Gano said Wednesday.

Gano said the Panthers’ team doctors misdiagnosed a 2018 left leg injury that ultimately cost him the entire 2019 season.

He had fractured his left femur, but only a 2019 knee surgery got him right, thanks to a second opinion at New York’s Hospital for Special Surgery.

“It was potentially career-ending,” Gano said. “That whole thing was mismanaged. They told me I had one injury when it was actually a lot worse than that. What really needed to be fixed wasn’t. I shouldn’t have missed the full season I did. But there’s no changing it now, so I’m just thankful to be playing here.”

A Panthers spokesperson declined comment on behalf of the organization.

Gano, 34, said his Panthers departure also was frustrating because he never got a chance to kick for Matt Rhule and the new coaching staff when he got healthy in 2020.

“I think it was actually the day I was coming back to kick in front of the new coaches [in July 2020],” Gano said. “I was walking out the door and they stopped me and said, ‘Just wait.’ And they cut me right then. That was gonna be my first day kicking in front of the new staff.”

Gano signed a one-year deal with the Giants that August, though, and since then he has made 93.5% of his field goals (43 of 46) and 93.1% of his extra points (27 of 29). That quickly earned him an extension last November through 2023.

In contrast, the Panthers have had three kickers make 81.25% of their field goals (39 of 48) and 90.1% of their extra points (46 of 51) in the same span: Joey Slye (16 games), Ryan Santoso (one game) and current kicker Zane Gonzalez (five games).

Gano’s family still calls Charlotte home, and he’s grateful for his time with the Panthers, where he’s second on the franchise’s all-time scoring list (742 points).

“Looking back it’s such a great time that I had there, a lot of great memories, we raised a family there, that’s still home,” Gano said. “As frustrating as it was, I’d like to focus on being thankful for that opportunity. After getting released by Washington, they gave me a chance to play again, and I was thankful for that.”

“But at the same time,” Gano added, “it was frustrating. I knew I could still play. The way the injury was handled is frustrating, but I’m super thankful to be here. I love this place. I always try to take the positives out of everything.”

The Panthers, meanwhile, are no longer affiliated with their head team physician and head athletic trainer from that 2019 season: Dr. Pat Connor and trainer Ryan Vermillion. Vermillion followed Ron Rivera to Washington and is now under investigation by the Drug Enforcement Agency for alleged distribution of prescription drugs.