The Giants have begun their roster housecleaning, on Wednesday releasing wide receiver Golden Tate, a move that was expected for quite some time.
Tate, 32, was scheduled to make $8.4 million in 2021 and would have counted $10.8 on the salary cap — numbers that never were going to fly, given his lack of production last season. The Giants will save $6.1 million on the cap by parting ways with Tate, and he will count $4.7 million in dead money.
The Giants also released linebacker David Mayo, saving $2.3 million.
Tate’s addition was the immediate response after the Giants traded Odell Beckham Jr. to the Browns in 2019. The Giants in no way expected Tate to replicate Beckham’s exploits on the field, but they gave him a four-year, $37.5 million contract that did not make it prohibitive to get rid of him after two years.
Tate got off to a bad start with his new team, missing the first four games of his Giants career on NFL-mandated suspension for violating the league’s policy on performance-enhancing substances. In 11 games that 2019 season, Tate caught 49 passes for 676 yards and six touchdowns.
His second year with the Giants was a bust. He battled injuries and in 10 games, caught 35 passes for 388 yards and two touchdowns. He was sent home from practice and benched for one game by head coach Joe Judge after a Week 8 outburst in a loss to the Buccaneers on Monday Night Football, as Tate screamed, “Throw me the damn ball!’’ at the Giants’ sideline after a reception and later shouted, “Throw me the ball!’’ into a television camera after a touchdown catch. Tate also “liked’’ a post on Twitter suggesting the Giants should cut him. In Week 4, he was involved in a postgame fight with Jalen Ramsey of the Rams. There was bad blood between the two players, as Ramsey is the ex-boyfriend of Tate’s sister, who has two children with Ramsey.
By saving $8.4 million on the cap, the Giants are now just about at the $180 million figure that is expected to be the minimum teams will be able to spend this season. There will be other cuts in the days to come to increase the cap space.
Without Tate, Sterling Shepard should be able to return to his most comfortable and productive spot as a slot receiver.
Mayo, 27, played in all 16 games (13 starts) in 2019, but was not part of the playing rotation in 2020, with only two starts in 11 games.
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March 04, 2021 at 07:04AM
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Giants release wide receiver Golden Tate - New York Post
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