Giants Insider: Aldrick Rosas misses 33-yard chip shot FG, injuries continue to mount

GLENDALE, Ariz. -- Add a new kicker to the Giants' long Christmas wish list to Santa.

Rookie Aldrick Rosas missed a 33-yard chip shot in Sunday's first half with the Giants trailing only 3-0 at the time, sucking the little momentum Big Blue had right out of the game.

Rosas fell to 16-of-23 on field goals this season, and his 69.56-percent success rate on field goals is believed to be the worst this season among all kickers still active as of Week 16. Rosas also incredibly has missed a field goal or extra point, or had one blocked, in half (eight) of the Giants' 16 games this season.

So the next Giants GM will need to continue searching for a permanent solution at kicker, a problem created by the Giants' spring 2016 re-signing of Josh Brown, who had abused his wife, and being forced to release him that October.

Veteran Robbie Gould replaced Brown for the remained of last season but then-GM Jerry Reese didn't re-sign him, and Gould signed with San Francisco, where he was 36-of-38 on field goals and 19-of-20 on extra points entering Sunday's game against Jacksonville. Rosas is 20-of-22 on extra points.

Punter Brad Wing meanwhile continued a down season with some bad boots that failed to win the field position battle.

On Sunday, Tom Quinn's special teams unit overall also remained subpar, coming off the previous week's disaster against the Eagles, when the Giants had a punt, field goal and extra point blocked.

Not only did Rosas miss the field goal, but they committed three first-half special teams penalties (Eli Apple, Jerell Adams, Ryan Murphy) and nearly had another punt blocked.

Wide receiver Hunter Sharp, signed on Dec. 12 off the Denver Broncos' practice squad, made his Giants debut and returned punts and kicks

MAKING (THE WRONG KIND OF) HISTORY

The Cardinals hadn't scored a touchdown since Dec. 3, going back three games, and their drought reached 11 quarters without a TD through Sunday's first quarter. In fact, when Phil Dawson kicked an early field goal for a 3-0 Arizona lead, it had marked Dawson accounting for 33 straight Cardinal points.

But of course, Steve Spagnuolo's Giants defense played the part of slumpbusters, surrendering two Stanton TD passes straddling the half to Fitzgerald and John Brown. The Cardinals drove 79 yards in nine plays for the first score and 75 yards in 11 plays for the second.

Meanwhile, FOX's Dick Stockton on the game broadcast said after the Giants' second punt that the Giants led the league with 52 three-and-outs on offense this season. And on Sunday the Giants had seven penalties in the first half.

At least DB Ross Cockrell made two impressive interceptions in the second half, the first in the end zone to deny Fitzgerald a second TD.

BAD APPLE

Second-year corner Eli Apple committed an early special teams holding penalty and otherwise barely played, back in the doghouse after returning from a four-game scratch to play 60 snaps in the previous week's loss to the Eagles. Apple sat on the bench despite starting corner Brandon Dixon being beaten for two Cardinals TD passes. An NJ.com report on Saturday revealed that Apple's falling out this summer with stepfather Tim Apple, a major part of his support structure, is a big reason for his tumultuous second NFL season.

STILL NO WEBB

Davis Webb remained inactive for a 15th straight game to start the quarterback's rookie season with the Giants, despite taking some first-team reps in practice during the week. There will be only one more chance to activate Webb next Sunday on New Year's Eve in the Giants' season finale at MetLife Stadium against Washington … Healthy defensive ends Romeo Okwara and Avery Moss also were inactive for unknown reasons, along with healthy punt returner WR Kalif Raymond, recently-signed offensive lineman Damien Mama, and injured starters WR Tavarres King (concussion) and LB B.J. Goodson (ankle). Okwara recently came off injured reserve but Moss' situation is unusual. He saw his playing time decrease and now is a healthy scratch despite starting DE's Jason Pierre-Paul (finger) and Olivier Vernon being banged up. King caught two TD passes in the previous week's home loss to the Eagles.

ODDS AND ENDS

The Giants scored 29 points running an up-tempo, hurry-up offense for most of a Week 15 loss to the Eagles, but offensive coordinator Mike Sullivan's game plan for Sunday in Arizona inexplicably called for grinding it out and slowing the pace. The Giants predictably couldn't run the ball. In fact, at 2nd and 2 in the second quarter, they ran twice with three offensive tackles on the field and gained just one yard total, just before Rosas missed his FG … The Cardinals' Kareem Martin, a fourth-year LB with 21 tackles and no sacks on the season, blew by Giants left tackle Ereck Flowers to pressure Manning before his second interception to Bethea in the first half. And then Martin torched Giants right tackle Bobby Hart to force a Manning fumble in the third quarter to force a Giants punt.