The New York Giants got off to a hot start in free agency, adding veteran cornerback James Bradberry before agreeing to terms with middle linebacker Blake Martinez (Green Bay Packers).
Here are four quick things to know about Martinez:
A history with DC Patrick Graham
When Martinez walks into the building in East Rutherford for the first time, he’ll see at least one familiar face — defensive coordinator Patrick Graham.
In 2018, Graham served as the outside linebackers coach and run-game coordinator in Green Bay, where he oversaw Martinez on the defensive side of the ball.
In fact, Martinez had his best season as a pro under Graham, recording 144 tackles and five sacks that year.
A tackling machine
Martinez has recorded at least 140 tackles in each of his previous three seasons and led all linebackers with 155 tackles in 2019. Those 155 tackles and his 97 solo tackles were each career highs.
In 2017, Martinez tied for the overall league lead with 144 tackles. Preston Brown (Buffalo Bills) and Joe Schobert (Cleveland Browns) also finished that season with 144 tackles. However, Martinez’s 96 solo tackles eclipsed both Brown and Schobert.
In four NFL seasons, Martinez has recorded a total of 512 tackles.
Doesn’t leave the field
Martinez has started all 16 games in each of the previous three seasons and has barely left the field over that span. He’s taken at minimum 93% of Green Bay’s defensive snaps, including 96% of the defensive snaps in both 2018 and 2019.
Additionally, Martinez isn’t afraid to get his hands dirty on special teams if necessary, taking between 15% and 30% of all special teams snaps over the previous four seasons.
In total, Martinez has been on the field for 3,490 defensive snaps and 410 special teams snaps since 2016.
Not strong in coverage
When news broke that the Giants had agreed to terms with Martinez, skeptics were quick to ignore all of his best traits in order to focus solely on the one thing he does not do at an elite level: cover.
Such is life in 2020, I suppose. There is an addiction to negativity, but I digress…
Over the past two seasons, Martinez has been a liability in coverage, surrendering 107 receptions (80% completions) for 980 yards, seven touchdowns and a 110.0 QB rating. Those are terrible numbers any way you slice it, but the Giants were undoubtedly aware of all that before agreeing to the contract.
It’s important to keep this Joe Judge quote in mind: “Don’t tell me what they can’t do, tell me what they can do.”
