- Giants left guard Justin Pugh said he has “noticed” the money paid to interior linemen this offseason and believes he is “sitting in the driver’s seat“ for a major payday himself.
- He has enjoyed a good career to date, grading above 80.0 in his two seasons at guard after a solid first two seasons at right tackle, grading above 75.0 both years.
- Pugh’s pass-blocking efficiency has steadily increased from his rookie year, posting scores of 93.4, 95.7, and 97.5 from 2013 to 2015. He was on course to improve again in 2016, earning a score of 97.7 (ninth among guards) in a strong start to the season before being injured in Week 9 (he ended with a score of 96.6 for the year).
- In both of his two seasons on the interior, Pugh has ranked in the top 10 in fewest total pressures allowed among guards with at least 350 pass-block snaps.
- Pugh has also produced in the run game, ranking as the seventh-best run-blocking guard in 2015 with a grade of 85.8.
- Pugh earned a higher PFF grade than both Ronald Leary (80.4) and Laurent Duvernay-Tardif (78.4) in 2016, who received lucrative contracts of $9 million and $8.25 million per year, respectively, this offseason.
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