Giants to Release Kicker Aldrick Rosas
The New York Giants, whose veterans are set to report to training camp for the first of two COVID-19 tests on July 28, are planning to release kicker Aldrick Rosas "soon," as first reported by the NFL Network.
Rosas was recently charged with three misdemeanors stemming from an alleged hit-and-run accident on June 15. In addition to the hit-and-run offense, the 25-year-old Rosas was charged with one count each of reckless driving, and operating a vehicle on a suspended license related to a previous DUI.
Rosas went undrafted out of the University of Southern Oregon. He signed with the Titans in 2016, and then a year later, he signed with the Giants, for whom in 48 regular-season games, he converted 62 of his 75 field goal attempts (82.7 percent) and 86 of 94 point-after attempts.
After a shaky start to his NFL career in which he was ranked among the bottom of NFL placekickers in 2017, Rosas put together a Pro Bowl season in 2018, converting 32 of 33 field-goal attempts and 31 of 32 extra-point attempts. Rosas' performance also earned him a Second-Team All-Pro mention.
Last season Rosas reverted to his 2017 struggles. He missed five of his 17 field goal attempts, going 1-for-5 from beyond 40 yards, and four of his 39 extra-point attempts.
However, the Giants, not willing to move on from Rosas and his strong leg despite his struggles and tendered the restricted free agent with a second-round tender, worth $3.2 million, a tender Rosas signed in April. That money will revert to the Giants salary cap for 2020.
The pending transaction would drop the Giants down to 89 men on their roster, nine over the NFL's limit that must be reached by August 16. The Giants will still need to sign a new kicker, but it remains to be seen if they will do so right away or wait until the league's training camp schedule moves out of the ramp-up period and into the on-field practices.
