Markus Golden calls out Giants for lack of playing time prior to trade

Markus Golden threw a little shade at the New York Giants on Monday for his lack of playing time prior to being traded to Arizona.

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When Markus Golden returned to the New York Giants on the rarely-used unrestricted free agent tender in 2020, he did so professionally. When he saw his playing time decreased, he handled it professionally. And when he was ultimately traded to the Arizona Cardinals, he went quietly.

Golden never once took aim at the Giants even though they were deserving, instead choosing to go about his business without making any waves.

But time has an interesting way of changing things, and Golden apparently felt the need to finally vent his frustrations on Monday.

In reply to a tweet by Pro Football Focus that dove into Golden’s success alongside teammate Haason Reddick, the 29-year-old edge rusher shaded the Giants and defensive coordinator Patrick Graham for not playing him more.

Golden took just 175 snaps in his seven games with the Giants, but still managed to record 14 quarterback pressures. In Arizona, the veteran saw his snap count balloon to over 410 in nine games, which led to an additional 41 quarterback pressures.

Considering the Giants are in need of a quality edge rusher, and taking into account that he recorded 10.0 sacks for them a year prior, Golden’s lack of use is perplexing. But perhaps Graham just didn’t have the same space for Golden that his predecessor, James Bettcher, did.

Now headed back into free agency, Golden will seek out the sort of contract that alluded him a year ago. However, do not expect any sort of reunion in East Rutherford.

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