The New York Giants will officially enter the 2020 season with Markus Golden under contract. While his off-season has not gone the way he expected, which would have ideally landed him a multi-year extension with an NFL team, he is now on a one year deal again.
The Giants placed the rarely used free agent tender on Golden, which will pay him $4.125 million next season. That is a steal for a player who logged 10.0 sacks in 2019. He reported to the team earlier this week for COVID-19 testing and a physical, and he has clearly passed both given his signing.
The former Arizona Cardinal racked up 27 quarterback hits, 72 combined tackles, and 13 tackles for loss in 2019. While he proved his worth with the Giants, it took him 917 defensive snaps to get there. It seems that most teams didn’t want to pay Golden the money he was seeking, so the Giants ended up getting him on a bargain deal. While this might suggest that Golden is overvalued and doesn’t produce as well as the stats show, he provides value to the outside linebacker group.
Currently, the Giants have Oshane Ximines, Lorenzo Carter, Kyler Fackrell, and Golden as their primary rotational pass rushers.
There you have it! Golden is officially a Giant and will be paid $4.125 million in 2020. A steal for a guy who logged 10.0 sacks in 2019. #NYG https://t.co/ROLmnBi2GF
— Alex Wilson (@AlexWilsonESM) August 4, 2020