Giants Defense Grades: Deonte Banks Shows New Physicality in Dolphins Win

The New York Giants defense wasn’t on the field very much against the Miami Dolphins–just 36 times. So the sample size for grading isn’t very large, though some stood out and others didn’t.

Outside Linebackers

Caleb Murphy

Having earned the start this week, Murphy rewarded the coaches’ confidence in him by delivering a team-leading four tackles.

Though we haven’t been thrilled with Murphy’s pass rush game to date, his playing instincts and nose for the football are hard to ignore.

He also has the physicality the coaches are looking for in their outside linebacker room.

We suspect if the Giants keep four at this position, it will come down to Murphy or Khalid Kareem. If it were up to us, we’d go with Murphy, whose mobility and low power are more intriguing qualities.

Khalid Kareem

The other starting outside linebacker this week, Kareem has provided good, consistently physical edge play in both preseason games and has a chance to augment the lean athleticism with his big body and physicality.

We think Caleb Murphy is a little bit better at finding the ball, but Kareem’s physicality can certainly play a role.

Trace Ford

This active but undersized outside linebacker continues to flash, attacking gaps and edges with consistent aggressiveness that is hard not to like.

New York Giants kicker Dominic Zvada | USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect

Though he only got credit for one tackle, we thought Ford’s penetration on the edges, even his pass coverage against tight ends, were flash plays.

We will always appreciate his defensive temperament and his attack mentality, even if he lacks the length to be a consistent contributor.

Inside Linebackers

Arvell Reese

Getting a starting assignment but only playing two series, the ball never found the first-round rookie as he played mostly pass coverage. He still was able to assist on the game’s opening tackle.

Micah McFadden

McFadden recorded the defense’s lone turnover when he jumped on a first-half fumble.

McFadden only played a couple of series and left with this only dent on the stat sheet.

Jack Kelly

Kelly received 20 snaps at inside linebacker and had a mostly positive showing. His lone glitch came when he badly overran his gap on one cutback run that went for 15 yards, a play that was fortunately called back by a holding penalty.

Kelly filled several gaps with his long reach and recorded his lone tackle in space. That aforementioned bad read was simply a rookie mistake, and hopefully one he’ll learn from.

Zaire Barnes

One of the defense’s biggest plays of the game was Barnes reading a screen near the Miami end zone, making the solo tackle in space, and never nearly recording a safety.

It was Barnes’ lone tackle of the day, but with that said, we have little doubt that Barnes is making this team not just for his contributions on defense but more so for his special teams ability.

Darius Muasau

Though his name came up empty on the defensive stat sheet, we swear we saw Muasau get in on several late-game tackles. That said, Muasau’s ticket to a roster spot is on special teams, where he had a mostly quiet, yet solid showing.

Anfernee Orji

This long-shot summer signing barely got on the field, playing just three snaps, and did not flash.

Cornerbacks

Paulson Adebo

Back from his hamstring strain, Adebo started the game and responded with two tight press coverages and one tight tackle as a result of tight zone coverage. Adebo only played two series before leaving the game for good, but they were a positive showing.

Greg Newsome II

Also back from injury—Newsome had been sidelined with a knee sprain—Newsome came out fast with an instinctive run tackle, a coverage knockaway, then another edge leverage run stop for little gain, as you draw it up on the blackboard.

We loved Newsome’s fiery aggressiveness, something this room could use a whole lot more of. Newsome did little to hurt his chances of locking down one of the starting cornerback jobs on this team.

Deonte Banks

Banks knocked away two balls with tight trail coverages, then jumped into the fray with two run game tackles. Banks has been playing like a much different player this year, one who is not only full of confidence but also more physical than ever.

Banks has always had the physical goods to back up a physical style of play, but has lacked the want-to. So far this summer, he’s showing both, and we’ll take that every day.

Banks finished with the two tackles and the two knockaways before leaving after several impressive series on the field.

Dru Phillips

Another cornerback who returned from injury (knee), Phillips looked bad early on when he couldn’t find the ball while covering a go route, and then he grabbed the receiver to draw a flag. To make things worse, the receiver caught the ball for a 30-yard gain.

Coverage being a struggle at times, Phillips then showed greater effectiveness in attacking the line of scrimmage.

He blew up a slip screen out of the slot all by himself, making the tackle for no gain. Then he run-blitzed off an edge, knifed in, and attacked the ball carrier, who seemed surprised by the ferocity of Phillips’ hit and lost the ball, which turned into the Giants’ lone defensive turnover.

We’re not sure what can be done about Phillips’ problems in coverage, but when it comes to everything else on the field, he is all-football and as physical pound-for-pound as anyone on this team.

He sees things fast, and he attacks them hard, but only if it happens around the line of scrimmage. Trap him in space, and he becomes almost a different player. Phillips finished with three tackles in six snaps.

Art Green

Getting 10 snaps at corner with the two’s and three’s, Green held up to the physical demands as always, but he wasn’t challenged in coverage at all.

Nic Jones

Similar in style to Dru Phillips, Jones’s instinctive reactions to plays at or around the line of scrimmage are something to like about his game.

Jones isn’t as vicious a hitter as Phillips, but he is better in coverage. He drew a hold on a wide run and made another short-gain tackle out of the slot.

Jones finished with two total tackles in limited snaps.

We’re not sure Jones has a place on this defense, but we really respect how well he sees the play and the angles he takes to limit those plays.

Korie Black

Getting just 13 snaps this week on defense, Black made more of an impact on special teams.

J.T. Woods

Getting three boundary snaps late in the game, we remain impressed by Woods’ size but are unsure of his ability to keep up with NFL receivers.

He’s a safety by nature, so this move to corner is in its infancy.

Safeties

Jason Pinnock

Continuing to be the most active of the safeties fighting for a starting job, Pinnock made one play in deep coverage.

But it was his discipline, shown in his contain against the run during the scrimmage, that was really impressive. Pinnock had one tackle on the day, but he was around the ball more often than not.

Tyler Nubin

Pinnock’s competition for that starting safety job that’s up for grabs, Nubin flashed early on a deep middle throw and knocked it away. He also had a good close against a tight end’s catch that went for little gain.

However, we did not like how slow Nubin looked attempting to close on that deep 30-yard completion that most starting safeties would have been able to knock away or intercept.

Nubin was so deliberate on his turn-and-go that it’s obvious why he’s been a target in the league for two years now, and we can see why there might be some question as to whether he’s starting material in this league.

Ar’Darius Washington

Washington made one early run blitz from the edge and closed down the play from pursuit for the tackle.

If there’s one way to help out a floundering run defense, it’s to provide occasional edge blitzes to help out. It’s not something to do regularly, or you could get burned, but early on it can be an effective deterrent.

Washington’s too small to plug in as a starting safety, but he’s got that Swiss Army knife element to his game that, combined with his aggressiveness, gets him near the action an awful lot of the time.

Elijah Campbell

This veteran safety was once again spotted playing some press corner on the boundary. Though the ball never came his way, he looked competent enough.

Owning cornerback size, Campbell plays with a safety’s demeanor, which makes for an intriguing combination.

He’s also a good special teamer. We wonder if he’s got a leg up over back-of-the-roster types like Raheem Layne and Beau Brade.

Raheem Layne

Layne got 10 snaps this week, but the play rarely reached his zone.

Beau Brade

Brade’s lone flash on defense was running a scrambling quarterback out of bounds late in the game. He made a much bigger mark on special teams.

Special Teams

Jordan Stout

Stout punted three times this week, with all three dropped inside the 20-yardline. One had a 2-yard return that was negated by a Miami hold. The second was fair caught. The third was muffed and turned into a turnover.

The result? Stout averaged a mere 41.0 on his three punts, but Stout’s punts allowed zero return yards, as not a single punt bounced harmlessly into the end zone or was caught on a line drive right down the middle of the field.

Stats aside, this was a solid day’s work from a master punter, a skill that should be easily repeatable except by the string of hapless alleged “punters” who have done this team’s punting for much too long.

Dominic Zvada

After getting shut out from the kicking festivities last week due to game circumstances, Zvada got the first half to put his big leg on display, and he performed without a glitch.

His kickoffs were good inside the 5-yard line (save one), and his place kicks (2 field goals, 2 extra points) were all stress-free conversions.

His two field goals were medium length (43 and 32 yards). His kicking motion was very smooth, with the ball jumping off his foot. There was very little hook in his kicks.

Ben Sauls

Sauls got all the second-half kicking duties, which included one very solid kickoff plus two medium-length field goals of his own (27 and 37 yards).

What bothers us a bit about Sauls’ kicks is that there’s a natural hook in all of them. It seems that those types of kicks would be difficult to repeat.

We’re not saying that Sauls can’t do it. He went 8-for-8 at the tail end of last season for the Giants, most of those kicks coming in cold and windy conditions (though none of them were long kicks).

It’s an interesting situation, one in which Sauls seems to be trailing off of training camp results to date.

Ben Mann

Mann continued to deliver good and accurate snaps.

Calvin Austin III

Austin was first up on punt return duties, and he looked good doing it. He tracked both of his punts, which were high and deep, produced returns of 11 and 18 yards, and made the first man miss on both occasions.

Both Austin and Braxton Berrios (inactive due to a slight soft tissue issue) have looked sharp. This poses a difficult question about who to keep, but if we’re making the call, we go with Austin, who is the much younger and more elusive of the two.

Xavier Gipson

The team’s third returner, Gipson was the team’s best return man. He returned one kickoff to the 32-yard line, recorded 3 stress-free fair catches of punts, and had punt returns of 13 and 34 yards.

The latter return was called back by penalty. Regardless, Gipson did a stellar job tracking and securing all of these punts with nary a glitch in the process.

Damon Bankston

Getting the only other kickoff return of the night, Bankston was quick to get it out to the 29-yard line before absorbing a physical hit.

Dalen Cambre

Cambre’s lone tackle did not come as a punt gunner, but rather on middle kickoff coverage when he made a diving tackle.

Beau Brade

Brade was a very busy man on punt duties. During a Giants fair catch, he committed a personal foul. On the game’s final punt, which was muffed, Brade was alert enough to fall on the loose ball.

Tyler Nubin

Nubin flubbed the tackle on the opening kickoff, but atoned for the miss by making a solo punt coverage tackle.

Evan Neal

Neal committed a false start on a short field goal attempt. No worries, as kicker Dominic Zvada still made the kick.

Micah McFadden

McFadden was called for a legit hold on the team’s big punt return.

Ugo Amadi

This veteran defensive back closed hard on a good Miami kickoff return that limited the damage.

Raheem Layne

The biggest hit of the day on special teams came from Layne, who laid out a Miami kickoff returner with a very physical face-up hit and finish.

Elijah Campbell

This 31-year-old veteran has been playing solid punt gunner duties this preseason. We like how he jaw-jacks with his opponent after the play but never goes over the line.

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