Why Reuniting with Cornerback Prince Amukamara Makes Sense for the Giants

Usually, when a player moves on there's no turning back, but here's why in the case of cornerback Prince Amukamara, bringing him back to the Giants might indeed make sense.

In 2011, Giants first-round draft pick Prince Amukamara, a cornerback out of Nebraska, was supposed to become a cornerstone of the team's defense.

Although he'd help them win a Super Bowl that year as a rookie and would go on to have several solid seasons in both coverages and run support, the Giants decided to go in another direction when Amukamara's rookie deal ended.

Part of the reason might have been that in five seasons, Amukamara only made it through a full year once (that in 2013). Still, perhaps more importantly, because in the 55 games he played for the Giants (45 as a starter), he only accumulated seven interceptions and 43 pass breakups.

Amukamara spent a year with Jacksonville after leaving the Giants before finding a home in Chicago for the last three seasons where he played well but wasn't quite the shutdown cornerback that perhaps his draft pedigree might have suggested he'd be.

But thanks to a salary cap related move, Amukamara is back on the market after the Bears decided not to carry the final year of his three-year, $27 million contract.

According to numbers from Pro Football Focus, the 30-year-old Amukamara pas posted an 89.9 NFL Rating in coverage over the last three seasons. Over that period, he's allowed 62.1% of the pass targets thrown against him to be completed for 1,489 yards, but just 462 of those yards have come after the catch.

As a tackler, Amukamara has 161 tackles over those three years with 35 for a stop. Last year in 566 coverage snaps, he allowed two touchdowns and was credited with four pass breakups (against 58 pass targets).

The Giants, who could use a veteran cornerback in what's otherwise a young group, could likely get Amukamara for under $10 million per season to provide veteran depth to the young group.

While some might want to see the Giants pursue Byron Jones or even a trade for Darius Slay, such moves might not make sense if the Giants believe that Sam Beal, who had an up-and-down half-season last year once he returned from injured reserve, can be the bookend to DeAndre Baker at cornerback.

The problem with Beal hasn't bee the talent; instead, it's been durability, so having an inexpensive option like Amukamara would give the Giants some protection in that regard if Beal were to be struck down by injuries again.