Giants Dilemma: Stick with the Youth or Get an Established Veteran Cornerback?
The Giants' cornerback situation, which at one point this off-season looked like a loaded position for the Giants, has suddenly become a pressing concern.
Besides the losses of DeAndre Baker (Commissioner’s Exempt List) and Sam Beal (opt-out), both end-of-the-year starters last season, the team’s youth continues to struggle with finding consistency and in producing a clear-cut leader to start opposite of veteran James Bradberry.
Despite that, the Giants have continued to churn the bottom of their roster. This week they signed corners Brandon Williams and KeiVare Russell to compete after waiving cornerback Christian Angulo and running back Javon Leake. Earlier in camp, they added Prince Smith Jr, who currently remains in the mix for a roster spot.
And they also tried to reach an agreement with veteran Ross Cockrell, who has experience playing to the perimeter and in the slot; unfortunately, that deal never materialized.
Head coach Joe Judge has repeatedly said that the players are progressing, and he likes the direction they’re headed. But as far as whether he has what he needs on the roster to be competitive, there appears to be some hesitation with Judge offering a full-scale endorsement
“We've got one more week right now to really look at these guys and evaluate them and see what kind of progress they can make,” he said Monday. “I'd say referring specifically to the defensive backs, we've got a number of guys that are working hard (and) showed improvement.”
Considering time is starting to run out, Judge was asked at what point they will decide to move on from a guy who isn’t progressing as quickly as the staff would like.
“Everything's very unique based on the current roster situation at that time, the player we're talking about, where he is in his career, where we are maybe health-wise depth-wise, or you know, anything else that would come up,” Judge said.
“So there's no blanket answer for that, but we just try to always make sure we make the best-calculated decision to help our team. We have to understand that sometimes on the surface, it doesn't look like every decision necessarily is the one everyone would expect, but we're always looking down the road long term for our team and what helps us best.”
The Giants have thus far resisted adding an established veteran. Logan Ryan has been sitting out there unsigned, but it’s believed his initial price tag was a little too rich for the Giants’ taste. Ryan, who recently changed representation, is thought to have revamped his financial expectations after declaring himself as more of a safety than a cornerback moving forward.
Another veteran who just became available is Prince Amukamara, the Giants’ first-round pick in 2011 who left the team after the 2015 season, spending one year in Jacksonville and then the last three years with the Bears.
Amukamara was signed by the Raiders earlier this year, but they have since cut him as they are facing a potential salary-cap squeeze once the Top 51 rule expires.
Amukamara, who is primarily a perimeter corner, was solid during his most recent stint with the Bears. In two of his three seasons, he finished with an NFL rating under 90, though last year that rating shot up to 102.3.
In 1,759 pass coverage snaps, he allowed just six touchdowns while recording three interceptions and 16 passes defensed during his time with Chicago.
For the time being, Judge said that the team would continue working with what they have on the roster before making any other moves.
“I think we have to just go ahead with these young guys and look at the progress they're making relative to previous years,” he said. “It's not really about where anyone is right now; it's about where they're going to be long term, and that's what we have to look through.”
