Giants Release Veteran LB and Team Captain Alec Ogletree

Alec Ogletree with Giants during Saints vs Giants game in 2018. Photo by Duncan Williams/CSM/Shutterstock

New York Giants will enter the 2020 NLF season with not just the new head coach, but also a new team captain. The team announced on Wednesday that they are cutting veteran linebacker and team captain Alec Ogletree.

The Giants’ decision to part ways with Ogletree, who came to New York in a trade from LA Rams in 2018, was part of the team’s attempts to shed salary. The 28-year-old was one of the highest-paid linebackers in the NFL in recent years, earning $10 million a year, but failed to justify the money invested in him. He played 76 percent of snaps on defense in 2019 and managed only 80 tackles and 1.0 sacks.

Considering that Ogletree was set to earn $10 million in 2020, and be the league’s fourth-highest-paid inside linebacker, Giants decided it’s in their best interest to release him. Ogletree’s salary wasn’t guaranteed for next season, so the team will only suffer $3.5 million dead money hit.

As part of the roster moves, Giants also released outside linebacker Kareem Martin.

Martin joined New York Giants in 2018 as well, arriving as a free agent. The 28-year-old was limited to just five games last season due to knee injury, failing to make any real contribution. He was scheduled to make $7 million in 2020.

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