An important offseason for the Giants now appears to be in motion.
SNY NFL Insider Ralph Vacchiano confirms that the Giants have informed wide receiver Golden Tate and linebacker David Mayo that they will be released.
By releasing Tate, the Giants will save $6.1 million in cap space for 2021, while Mayo’s release saves Big Blue another $2.3 million. Per Vacchiano, the Giants are now around $8.4 million (the total of these two moves) under the salary cap floor of $180 million, though the official cap number has not been set by the league.
Tate originally signed a four-year, $37.5 million contract with the Giants prior to the 2019 season, a move that came in wake of New York trading fellow wideout Odell Beckham Jr. to the Cleveland Browns.
The 32-year-old ends his Giants tenure after an inconsistent 23-game span. The Notre Dame product caught 84 passes in a Giants' uniform for 1,064 yards and eight touchdowns.
After his 676-yard season in 2019, his production dropped off in 2020 to 35 catches for 388 yards, prompting Tate to call out the team for not using him enough. He was later sent home by head coach Joe Judge due to his very public pleading for more targets during a Monday night loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
The veteran wideout posted a thank you message to fans on teammates on Wednesday night.
"To my teammates, I'll value each and every relationship I've built over the last 2 seasons forever. Such a fun gritty group of dudes to be around," he wrote.