New York Giants land linebacker Blake Martinez in free agency – here’s what you need to know

The New York Giants have made another free agent signing. This time, Dave Gettleman and company struck a deal with inside linebacker Blake Martinez, per Mike Garafolo. Martinez and the Giants have agreed to a three-year deal worth $30 million.

Blake Martinez Stats And Highlights

Blake Martinez is a four-year NFL veteran who has spent his entire career with the Green Bay Packers. The 26-year-old linebacker out of Stanford is a tackle machine. He is also a reliable, healthy player that has started all 16 games for the Packers in each of the last three seasons.

Martinez has recorded 144 or more combined tackles in each of the last three seasons. He posted a career-high 155 combined tackles in 2019. In 2018, Martinez only missed 12 tackles (7.7%) and in 2019 he missed 18 tackles (10.4%).

The Packers inside linebacker is also a pretty decent pass-rusher, despite seeing his role as a pass-rusher decline in 2019. In 2018, Martinez blitzed 61 times, recording 11 pressures, 5 hurries, and 5 sacks. The Packers only brought Blake on 24 blitzes in 2019, but he was still efficient. He recorded 5 pressures, 2 hurries, and 3 sacks on his 24 blitz attempts this past season.

Blake Martinez is an excellent run defender and solid pass-rusher, but he has proven to be a bit of a liability in pass coverage. In 2018, Blake Matinez surrendered a 73.8% completion percentage on the 61 targets in his coverage (45 completions). The opposition gained 410 yards on those 45 completions and scored 5 touchdowns. Martinez allowed a 118.9 passer rating when targeted in 2018.

2019 was an even worse performance by Martinez in pass coverage. His completion percentage allowed rose to 83.8%, allowing opponents to complete 62 passes on 74 targets for 570 yards and 2 touchdowns. This is definitely a major red flag for the New York Giants after signing Blake Martinez during the 2020 free agency period.