Big Blue View
Will Flott earn a second contract?
The New York Giants have invested heavily in their defense over the last couple years.
They’ve added high draft picks and talented free agents to try to turn the unit into one of the best in the NFL. The Giants’ defense has had good players for years now, however it’s also been top-heavy, with little depth behind their starters.
The secondary was always of the biggest concerns, and depth can be key. Not only have the Giants been thin on the back end, but the secondary always has to deal with attrition over the course of a year.
That makes 2022 third-round pick (81st overall) Cor’Dale Flott of keen interest as he enters his fourth year. Flott was never a consistent starter through the first two years of his career, but did start 10 of 14 games in 2024. He’s unlikely to push for a starting job in 2025 after the addition of Paulson Adebo and the emergence of Dru Phillips in the slot. However, he could still be an important depth piece who sees plenty of playing time in sub packages or in the event of injury.
Because of that, Flott taking the next step in his development would be an absolute boon to the Giants. And if he doesn’t, he could find himself looking for a new home in the 2026 free agency period.
The biggest factor in Flott’s potential success is the improvement he showed over the course of 2024.
Last year was Flott’s busiest to date, with him playing 637 snaps (73.8% of the total defensive snaps). Thanks to the Giants’ depth issues in the secondary, the overwhelming majority of those snaps came on the outside, as opposed to the slot. Flott played just 50 snaps in the slot, as opposed to 578 as an outside cornerback — a full game more than his 505 total snaps in 2023.
He certainly had his struggles over the course of those snaps, but the extra work may have been good for him. For instance, Flott showed growth in the mental and technique aspects of his game over the course of 2024.
He struggled some with missed tackles to start the season, with 5 missed tackles in his first 8 games. However, those five were the only missed tackles all year and he didn’t have a single missed tackle after Week 8. By the end of the year, his 8.6% missed tackle rate was significantly lower than the Giants’ 13.3% rate (which itself was roughly league-average).
Flott has always had a good closing burst, but his choice of angles is improving as well.
He’s also showing an improved understanding of leverage and how to force the ball back to his teammates.
His coverage and passer rating against also improved over the course of the year. Using Week 8 as the dividing line, we see a stark shift in Flott’s completion percentage allowed. Prior to Week 8, he...
