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Lawrence Tynes

Tynes at the Giants Super Bowl Ticker Tape parade in NYC on February 5, 2008
No. 9     New York Giants
Placekicker
Personal information
Date of birth: May 3, 1978 (1978-05-03) (age 31)
Place of birth: Greenock, Scotland
Height: 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)	Weight: 202 lb (92 kg)
Career information
College: Troy
Undrafted in 2001
Debuted in 2004 for the Kansas City Chiefs
Career history
As player: Kansas City Chiefs (2001-2002)* Scottish Claymores (2002) Ottawa Renegades (2002-2003) Kansas City Chiefs (2004-2006) New York Giants (2007-present) *Offseason and/or practice squad member only
Roster status: Active
Career highlights and awards
Super Bowl champion (XLII)
Career NFL statistics as of Week 5, 2009
Field Goals Made	105
Field Goals Attempted	131
Field Goals %	80.2%
Long Field Goal	53
Stats at NFL.com

Lawrence James Henry Tynes (born May 3, 1978, Greenock, Scotland) is an American football placekicker for the New York Giants. He was originally signed by the Kansas City Chiefs as an undrafted free agent in 2001.

Early years

Tynes was a standout kicker at Milton High School in Milton, Florida.

College career

Tynes attended Troy State University (now simply Troy University), graduating with a degree in criminal justice, and holds school records for career field goals (45), and points (262).

Professional career

First stint with Chiefs

Tynes originally entered the NFL as a rookie free agent with Kansas City in 2001. He also played in 10 games for the Scottish Claymores of NFL Europe in 2002.

Ottawa Renegades

Tynes joined the Ottawa Renegades of the Canadian Football League in 2003. Tynes holds Renegades records for most field goals in a single game (6) and most field goals in a single season (51).

Second stint with Chiefs

Tynes' 82.3% field goal percentage and strong leg earned him another tryout with the Chiefs. He replaced the aging Morten Andersen as the Chiefs' kicker for the 2004 NFL season. In 2004, Tynes made 17 of 23 field goals and 58 of 60 extra points, also handling kickoff duties.

New York Giants

After a sub-par 2006 season with the Chiefs, Tynes was traded to the New York Giants on May 22, 2007 for a conditional draft pick in the 2008 NFL Draft. He competed with and beat out Josh Huston for the Giants' placekicking job. Tynes became the first player to score NFL points at the new Wembley Stadium when the Giants played the Miami Dolphins in London on October 28, 2007.

Tynes missed two potential game-winning field goals against the Green Bay Packers in the 2007-2008 NFC Championship Game. He connected on a third in overtime, scoring from 47 yards and sending the Giants to Super Bowl XLII. This crucial play was later called "Tynes' Redeemer" and "Third Tynes the Charm." The game-winning field goal was the longest kicked in postseason history at Lambeau Field. Tynes scored the first and last points (5 points in total - including 1 field goal) in the New York Giants' Super Bowl XLII victory. Tynes, who was going to be a free agent in the 2008 offseason, signed a five-year, $7 million contract with the Giants on February 11, 2008.

He did not play in the 2008 season opener against the Washington Redskins due to a knee injury. Tynes later said that he would return in Week 5 of the regular season but did not do so. In week 10 against the Philadelphia Eagles, he returned as a kickoff specialist, handling only kickoff duties, while John Carney remained as the place kicker. In week 11 against the Baltimore Ravens, Tynes was the only Giants kicker in uniform, as he booted a field goal and three point after touchdowns. However, in week 12 versus the Arizona Cardinals, Tynes was once again handling the kickoffs and Carney the field goals.

On September 20, 2009, Tynes kicked the game-winning field goal to give the Giants a 33-31 victory over the Dallas Cowboys in the inaugural regular season game at Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, Texas.

Personal

Since joining the Giants, Tynes and his family have lived in Clifton, New Jersey.^[1] He and his wife, Amanda, make their offseason home in the Kansas City area in Overland Park, where their sons were born.^[2]

Tynes is the seventh Scottish-born player in NFL history ^[3] and the first to have won a Super Bowl ring. Only two other British (British-born) players have won a Super Bowl: Scott McCready and Tynes' Super Bowl XLII teammate, Osi Umenyiora.

Lawrence Tynes is the son of a former Navy SEAL. His father, Larry, was a member of SEAL Team 2 stationed in Scotland in the early 1970s. He is currently a detective in the Santa Rosa County Sheriff's department in Milton, Florida. One of his brothers, Jason, served in the United States Army in Iraq and Kuwait.^[4] His other brother, Mark Tynes, is serving 27 years in federal prison on drug and witness intimidation charges stemming from his 2004 involvement in a plan to move 3600 pounds of marijuana between Texas and Florida. Tynes has sought a presidential pardon to shorten or commute his brother's sentence. He has acknowledged his brother's guilt but feels the sentence was too harsh.^[5]

References

External links

• New York Giants bio