The Giants used an obscure NFL rule on Monday in an effort to try to keep free agent Markus Golden -- a move that might not result in his return, but at least gives them a fighting chance to keep him.
The gist is that Golden is still an unrestricted free agent and is free to sign anywhere without restrictions. However, if he is still unsigned on July 22 or as of the first day of NFL training camp (whichever is later) he becomes the exclusive property of the Giants and can only re-sign with them.
If the above happens, the Giants would get Golden back at a shade over $4 million for the 2020 season, which would be a far cry from what he has been seeking on the open market.
Speaking Tuesday on the Moose and Maggie show on WFAN, Giants head coach Joe Judge weighed in on the situation.
"Obviously, we think he's a talented player. He's been a great locker room guy. I have a lot of respect for him from afar -- I haven't worked with him in person yet," Judge said. "We did what we thought was best for the team in terms of using tags. And that's kind of how things are allocated through the CBA and (how) the league works. At this point now we're exploring a lot of options for roster additions. It's a fluid process throughout the year."
Asked if he was concerned about the potential that there would be hard feelings if Golden returned due to the low salary it would be at, Judge was reluctant to dip into that scenario.
"I'm not gonna go into the contract part of it," he said. "I'm excited about the prospect of talking to Marcus (and) see where it goes from there."
Being able to hang on to the 29-year-old Golden, who had 10.0 sacks last season, would be a boon for a Giants team that struggled badly last season when it came to getting to the quarterback and did little in the draft to improve in that area.