Grading Giants Signing CB Ar'Darius Washington

The New York Giants took some significant blows to their defensive secondary on the unofficial first day of NFL free agency, as they saw former starter Cor'Dale Flott jump ship to the Tennessee Titans and safety/special teamer, Dane Belton, make the next move across town to the New York Jets.

Right on cue, they promptly added another free agent from the John Harbaugh era in Baltimore, signing Ravens defensive back Ar'Darius Washington to help alleviate the gash the franchise took in one of its notable roster weaknesses.

Washington, whose deal with New York is reportedly a one-year, $3 million agreement, marked the third free-agent player the Giants recruited through their new head coach. The 2021 undrafted free agent out of TCU will presumably play a complementary role in two phases of the team.

The more important one is the defensive secondary, where he'll fill in the third safety spot on the depth chart, ensuring the group doesn't fall further out of favor in that aspect. Washington will also take over Belton's former role as a key contributor to the coverage units on special teams.

Still, the depth factor cannot be stressed enough, as the Giants' secondary was riddled with injuries during the 2025 season, with only two players making it through all 17 games, one of them being the departed Belton.

Former New York Giants safety Dane Belton — Aug 4, 2025; East Rutherford, NJ, USA; New York Giants safety Dane Belton (24) looks on during training camp at Quest Diagnostics Training Center. | Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images

Despite his place in the defensive hierarchy, Belton became one of the Giants' most productive tacklers last season, posting a career-high 120 tackles (20 being special teams takedowns) that only trailed former inside linebacker Bobby Okereke, who led the franchise with 143 total tackles.

While he lacked the quick speed and turning to thrive in deep coverages, his impact was quite underrated as he could play in the box, the nickel slot, or up top, where he often displayed a nose for the football and getting it back to the offense, posting an interception, three forced fumbles, and eight pass deflections.

Belton was even one of the best at slowing down the opposing run game, which was one of the Giants' biggest defensive woes. He posted an impressive 4.1% missed tackle rate, and two of his forced fumbles came in the trenches with the powerful hits he could sometimes lay even at his smaller size of 6-foot-1 and 190 pounds.

Washington is going to have some big shoes to fill, especially as he comes off an injury-plagued campaign after suffering an Achilles tear during the 2025 offseason. If healthy, as he was in 2024 when he appeared in all 17 games for the Ravens, he has proven he can be a serviceable player.

In that season, he amassed his career-best numbers in tackles (64), interceptions (2), and pass deflections (8) while whiffing on just 10 tackles to post a very impressive 80.3 PFF coverage grade that ranked third for the Ravens.

Washington's special teams workload also closely mirrors Belton's. He split his 158 special teams reps between the kickoff coverage and punt return units for Baltimore and scored a 70.3 PFF grade that marked the best of his NFL career.

Belton signed with the Jets for one year and $4 million, and the Giants landed Washington for just a tad below that number, making the financial impact of the transaction negligible toward their salary cap predicament. At the bare minimum, it's a clean exchange that keeps the Giants' options open as they look to splurge on other important needs throughout the roster.

Grade: B

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