Markus Golden was hoping to have teams flocking to him in free agency, but that wasn't the case this offseason. While Golden is set to return to the New York Giants, Golden was ‘frustrated' over his free agency process.

“You put in a lot of work during the season,” Golden said Monday, via Zack Rosenblatt of NJ.com. “This is a game that they say if you put the work in, hard work is going to pay off, and the game is going to pay you back in different ways. Of course, [free agency] was frustrating, but you just have to work harder and use everything as motivation.”

Last offseason, Golden bet on himself by signing a one-year, prove-it deal with the Giants. The former second-round pick proceeded to lead New York in sacks, logging 10 sacks and 27 quarterback hits.

Despite his production, Golden failed to receive much interest on the open market. As a result, the Giants used the rare UFA tender on Golden, ensuring he'd be back with the team if he didn't sign elsewhere. After reluctantly signing the tender, Golden understands that there's a business side to the NFL.

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“Business is business,” Golden said. “I know how this stuff goes. I’v been having that really since college and so I got a business mindset. You’ve got to have that mindset because that’s exactly what is. Yeah, it’s football, a game we’ve been playing since we were kids. But when you get to this level . . . you start to realize it’s a business. That’s a mindset I keep so I’ll be ready when different stuff like that happens.”

There's no doubt that Golden is disappointed in how his free agency process concluded. But if he can show the Giants that the 2019 season wasn't a fluke, he could have a chance to earn a more lucrative deal in 2021.