Cards linebacker Markus Golden is ready for the next one

Arizona Cardinals rookie linebacker Markus Golden has now played in his first NFL game.

How did it feel?

“I didn’t see a big difference,” Golden said on Off the Edge with B-Train on Arizona Sports 98.7 FM. “I played in the SEC and I once said the SEC was the NFL. I could really tell they got me ready for the NFL. It was a little faster but I felt like it was where I thought it would be.”

Even with the strong confidence courtesy of challenging college career, getting to move forward from his first game feels good for Golden.

“It helps out a lot to get that first one under your belt, you feel like ‘Yeah I’m an NFL Player now, I can play,'” Golden said. “It was big to get that first one under my belt and I know I’m going to be ready for the next one and continue to get better every game.”

Golden played three seasons at the University of Missouri and recorded 16.5 sacks over his last two seasons with the Tigers. That’s a stat the 6-foot-two 260- pound linebacker  hopes to rack up with the Cardinals as well.

“Just from watching the guy all week I know what moves I could use and I was able to get some pressures,” Golden said of his performance against Drew Brees and the Saints on Sunday. “I didn’t get the sack so I feel like it didn’t matter because you’ve got to get at least a sack a game.”

Golden sees a huge upside for the Cardinals defense under new defensive coordinator James Bettcher and is glad he has this group of guys to guide him through his first season.

“We were able to get after it,” Golden said of his team’s performance. “We’ve got a lot of guys on the team that really love the game and love to get out there and compete at a high level and I’m just making sure I’m learning from all these guys.”