GOULD STANDARD
Giants kicker: No place better than Lambeau
The Giants will be in good hands — good feet actually — when they play the Packers in Sunday’s NFC Wild Card Game at frigid Lambeau Field, where the temperature is expected to be in the single-digits at kickoff.
Their kicker, Robbie Gould, not only has as much experience as any non-Packers kicker kicking at Lambeau Field, having played there once a year for 11 seasons while he played in Chicago, he actually relishes kicking in Green Bay.
“It’s my favorite place to play in the National Football League,’’ Gould said. “I just think the history of it and the idea behind the Chicago Bears-Packers rivalry for so many years was something that you just couldn’t wait to be a part of and get up there. And the fans really buy into the culture of the NFL and the culture of the Packers, having some ownership in them.
“For me, there have been many good memories over the years there. Having played there for 11 years and being in some tough games, those things for me are helpful going into Sunday. I know the sightlines, I know the weather, I know the wind patterns, so things like that help.’’
Indeed, Gould is 17-of-18 on field goals and 18-of-18 on extra points in his career at Lambeau, accounting for 70 points in 11 games, five of which the Bears won.
Since he was signed by the Giants in advance of their Oct. 23 game against the Rams in London after they cut Josh Brown amidthe domestic-abuse controversy surrounding him, Gould has been gold for the Giants.
He’s made all 10 of his field goals and is 20-of-23 on extra points. The three missed extra points, which came in his fourth and fifth games as a Giant, are the only hiccups on his Giants résumé. None of the misses cost the Giants a game. One came in a win over the Browns, and the other two of them came against the Bears, his former team, which he conceded messed with his psyche.
“I would never wish anybody to have to play against their former team, because there are a lot of relationships,’’ he said. “It was more of a distraction than I thought it was going to be. But you learn from those mistakes.
“There is a lot of comfort level now with the operation and finding that rhythm that you normally would find in training camp. Zak [DeOssie, the long snapper] and Brad [Wing, the holder] have been great. It’s nice going into the postseason with that rhythm and tempo and timing.”