Big Blue View
The New York Giants have had plenty of problems since their last Super Bowl.
One of their most persistent issues over the last decade and a half has been their player development. Regardless of head coach or general manager, the Giants have largely struggled to turn their draft picks into dependable veterans. Even when draftees flash as rookies, they’ve seldom built upon those promising years and often regress.
Every team says they want to build through the draft, but for all the attention that the executive side gets in player acquisition, the coaching side is equally vital. If fans want to know the “secret sauce” in being consistently competitive at the collegiate or professional level, it’s player development.
That’s one of the most overlooked reasons why teams like the Patriots, Ravens, Steelers, 49ers, and Rams have been able to be consistently competitive in spite of consistently drafting late. And as it so happens, former Ravens’ head coach John Harbaugh is getting ready for his first training camp as the Giants’ head coach.
That makes this a good time to look back at the 2023 draftees’ rookie season and see how (or if) the new regime can develop them.
The Giants traded up to secure Banks with the 24th pick of the 2023 NFL Draft. At the time, Banks was drafted at the insistence of cornerbacks coach Jerome Henderson to be a “number one” corner in Wink Martindale’s aggressive blitz-happy defense.
This is what was we said about Banks after his rookie season:
The presence of a more developed Deonte Banks remains entrenched as the number one cornerback moving forward.
Banks played 840 defensive snaps for the Giants, recording 56 tackles, two interceptions, six passes defended, and a solid 57.6% reception rate. He did, however, commit 8 penalties, which was 13th-highest of all cornerbacks. He missed the final two games of the season.
Banks ranked 23rd best in reception rate of cornerbacks who played at least 50% of their team’s defensive plays.
Banks has all the necessary athletic traits to thrive in man coverage, and he had a good overall rookie season, by my estimation. He also displayed very good awareness with zone and match principles.
Whoever replaces Martindale as defensive coordinator will approve of having Banks on the roster. With the retention of Jerome Henderson, I expect Banks to continue his development as a number one corner in the league.
GRADE: B+
As we now know, it didn’t quite work out that way. Banks’ development stalled in 2024 when he failed to meaningfully improve in Shane Bowen’s scheme and as the Giants’ No.1 corner. He never appeared as comfortable shadowing top receivers as he did sticking on the right side as a rookie. There were flashes of the player the Giants hoped he’d become, such as when he locked down D.K. Metcalf against the Seahawks and bullied George Pickens out of the endzone to deny...
