Cardinals trade for Giants pass rusher Markus Golden

The former Cardinals second-round pick returns to Arizona for a 2021 sixth-round pick.

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The Arizona Cardinals made a trade. Lacking a pass-rushing presence off the edge at outside linebacker because of the season-ending injury to Chandler Jones, they acquired a familiar name.

The team announced Friday it traded a sixth-round pick in the 2021 draft to the New York Giants for linebacker Markus Golden.

Golden originally played for the Cardinals, as he was drafted by them in the second round of the 2015 draft. With Arizona, he he appeared in 46 games (24 starts) and  had 19 sacks, 119 tackles, six forced fumbles and one fumble recovery, including a career-high 12.5 sacks with Arizona in 2016.

He had 10 sacks in 2019 for the Giants and re-signed with them on a one-year deal. So far this season through seven games, he has 10 tackles, 1.5 sacks and a forced fumble. He has not been starting.

Once he is acclimated, he will likely take over the starting job at outside linebacker opposite Devon Kennard.

Since he played on Thursday in the Giants’ game against the Philadelphia Eagles, he will not play this weekend and he likely must clear COVID protocols before he can begin practicing.

Golden is playing on a one-year deal, so he will be motivated to produce over the final nine games of the season.

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