First came Calais Campbell. Then it was Chandler Jones’ turn. Jason Pierre-Paul cashed in next, with the Giants.
In a span of 10 days in March 2017, three pass-rushers signed free-agent contracts in excess of a combined $200 million. And none were coming off 2016 seasons as productive as Markus Golden’s.
You can almost imagine Golden — who notched 12.5 sacks playing for the Cardinals alongside Campbell (who left for the Jaguars) and Jones (who re-signed) — drooling in anticipation of the market when his contract expired.
When the time finally came last offseason, however, Golden still was recovering from an ACL tear in 2017 and had to settle for a one-year, $3.