New York Giants To Lock Up DL Leonard Williams With Franchise Tag For Second Straight Season

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Leonard Williams has proven to be one of the best players on the defensive line in the NFL, and the New York Giants are set to make sure he doesn't think about going anywhere.

On Tuesday, NJ.com reported that the Giants are going to franchise tag Williams, making sure that he does not take off via free agency next week.

It's the second straight season that Williams has been tagged, and with a second-straight tag, the tag’s value must be 120% of the total from the year before. Williams earned $16.1 million on the franchise tender in 2020, so that should pop up to about $19.3 million this year.

The worst part about a tag on Williams is that New York will now have to carry the $19.3 million as a cap hit, which is a big chunk of the salary cap for the team.

Entering free agency, the Giants are going to do what they can to lessen their cap. Right now, the team is just projected to have around $7.3 million in cap space.












Now that the immediate future has been decided for Williams, the team needs to decide the long term future of fellow defensive lineman Dalvin Tomlinson.

Tomlinson set career bests in sacks (11.5), tackles for loss (14), and quarterback hits (30) in 2020 at age 26.

For now, with Williams locked up, the team will need to decide the long term fate of Tomlinson. One down, one to go on the team's defensive line saga.





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Matt has been a part of the Cleveland Sports landscape working in the media since 1994 when he graduated from broadcasting school. His coverage beats include the Cleveland Indians, Cleveland Browns and Cleveland Cavaliers. He's written three books, and won the "2020 AP Sports Stringer Lifetime Service Award."