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Ian Rapoport reports free agent OT Nate Solder will sign with the New York Giants.
The #Giants went all in on LT Nate Solder, especially after watching Andrew Norwell head to the #Jaguars. They priced out the #Patriots and the #Texans… making Solder the highest paid LT.
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) March 14, 2018
The six-year veteran and two-time Super Bowl champion leaves the New England Patriots for New York on a reported four-year, $62 million contract with $35 million guaranteed, which will make Solder the highest-paid offensive lineman in the league.
The #Giants are signing LT Nate Solder to a 4-year deal worth $62M, source said, with $35M guaranteed. The highest paid OL in the NFL.
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) March 14, 2018
Three teams were in it for Solder: Patriots, Texans, Giants. Texans started to have doubts they'd be able to keep up last night, and Patriots had their limits.
— Albert Breer (@AlbertBreer) March 14, 2018
Solder will turn 30 in April. He was selected seventeenth overall in the 2011 NFL Draft out of Colorado.
After trading stalwart Duane Brown to the Seahawks in October of 2017, the Texans entered the offseason with left tackle as arguably their single-biggest positional need. Houston missed out on a replacement today, thanks to New York giving out an insane contract.
Solder is fine. He was an above-average pass blocker for the Patriots. But he offers nothing in the run game. He also played in an offense that helped him out a ton with chips and blocked in a quick-passing offense where he can pass-set aggressively. Even though he was the best left tackle in this free agent class, he is by no means worth $15 million a year.
Houston still has a big hole at left tackle, but they are better off not paying as much as Solder got from the Giants because of need. It will be interesting to see what route the Texans take to improve the position and how much faith they have in Julie’n Davenport, if they have any at all.
Keep checking Battle Red Blog throughout the free agency period for the latest updates.