Giants rookie kicker Aldrick Rosas looks great in preseason debut
New York Giants kicker Aldrick Rosas looks on in a preseason NFL game against the Pittsburgh Steelers at MetLife Stadium on Friday, Aug. 11, 2017. Credit: Kathleen Malone-Van Dyke
The Giants brought in 35-year-old veteran kicker Mike Nugent on Aug. 1 as an insurance policy in the event first-year kicker Aldrick Rosas wasn’t ready for NFL-caliber competition. But the 22-year-old kicker out of Southern Oregon looked just fine in his first action with the Giants.
Rosas nailed both his field-goal attempts in a 20-12 loss to the Steelers Friday night at MetLife Stadium. He hit a 27-yarder with 1:38 to play in the first quarter and then booted a 52-yard field goal with 1:12 to play in the second quarter.
“I was just anxious to get out there finally, to get a real kick in a real stadium in front of a lot of people,” said the 6-3, 221-pound Rosas. “It was great that I got the opportunities and they trusted me. Every kick, whether it’s a 20-yarder or a 60-yarder, you go one-for-one and you try to go one-for-one again. Just stay as smooth as possible.”
Nugent, now in his 13th NFL season, hit his two field goal attempts, one from 30 yards out and the other from 45 yards. Both kicks came in the second quarter.
Bob Glauber retired in 2022 after covering the NFL for nearly 40 years. He was selected in 2021 for the Bill Nunn Career Achievement Award by the Pro Football Writers of America, and is a three-time winner of the New York State Sportswriter of the Year by the National Sports Media Association. President of the PFWA for the 2018-20 seasons, he is the author of “The Forgotten First” and “Guts and Genius.”
