Rico Payton's Long Shot to Make the Giants' Crowded Cornerback Room

After being a long shot to make the New Orleans Saints' 53-man roster, Rico Payton went from an undrafted free agent to suiting up for every game but one in the 2024 season as a member of the Saints. Unfortunately, he was not that lucky in 2025, when he was cut at the end of the preseason.

Although he found another home with the New York Giants, it wasn't an immediate return to the active roster. He spent the first half of the season waiting for his opportunity, but he was active for the last half of the Giants' 2025 season.

It is that momentum he hopes will propel him into this year and give him an opportunity to solidify a role as a special-teamer, while also continuing to show he can be a rotational piece on defense.

He has already beaten the odds, scratching out two years of service as a player out of a Division II program. But he has bigger aspirations than just being a guy who got a "cup of coffee" in the NFL after a career at Pittsburg State. He wants to define himself as a legitimate NFL player with a career on par with his peers.

RICO PAYTON, CB

Height: 6-foot-0
Weight: 182 lbs.
Exp.: 4 Years
School: Pittsburg State
How Acquired: W(NO)-'25

2025 in Review

Payton was waived from the Saints at the end of the preseason when they were cutting down to the final 53-man roster, and the New York Giants claimed him off waivers.

To make space for him, they waived rookie corner Korie Black and terminated Gunner Olszewski's contract (they would eventually bring both back).

He made his debut for Big Blue in Week 9 of the season when they welcomed the San Francisco 49ers.

He did not earn any defensive snaps that day, but he played 12 special-teams snaps and went on to account for 41% of the he team's special teams snaps on the year.

He would receive consistent special-teams snaps but still not get any defensive time until Week 17. During his exclusive special teams time, he made three tackles.

In Week 17, he finally received his first defensive snaps. In addition to his 11 snaps on special teams, he received 9 snaps on defense.

During that game, he tallied two tackles against the Las Vegas Raiders. In Week 18 against the Cowboys, he received 25 defensive snaps. That was 45% of the total defensive snaps in the game.

He recorded his first pass breakup of the year. He also made seven tackles: three were solo, and four were assisted. It was a decent showing for him going into the offseason.

Contract/Cap Info

According to Spotrac, Payton is entering the final year of a three-year, $2.845 million contract he signed with the New Orleans Saints in 2024. When the Giants claimed him off waivers in 2025, they assumed responsibility for his contract.

This year, if he survives training camp and lands on the final roster, he is slated to make $1.075 million, with no other bonuses. He will also carry a cap hit of the same number, and his contract does not include any dead cap because the Saints accrue it.

2026 Preview

There are so many unknowns about the cornerback room and that’s what gives Payton a shot to make the 53-man roster. Although there are names we may be familiar with in the cornerback room, nobody has unquestioned production.

Given the current state of affairs in that room, only two players are guaranteed to make the roster.

Paulson Adebo is going into year two of a pretty big deal the Giants signed him to last season. Nobody in the organization would be ready to give up on him after only one year.

Colton Hood, the team's second-round pick this season, is another guy who will be on the 53-man roster, regardless of how he performs in training camp and throughout the preseason. This obviously doesn't include Dru Phillips, who will likely operate exclusively as the nickel in this defense.

Greg Newsome was brought in to compete for a starting job, but he is on a low-money deal; if he looks like a disaster during the preseason, they could cut him.

Deonte Banks is a guy with a lot of athletic upside, but he may be on his last opportunity with this team under a new regime. If he doesn't show the promise they feel he has, he could be gone.

All of the other players at the position are names that don't hold a lot of gravity, and thus, it opens an opportunity for Payton to usurp them in the depth chart. He will also have the advantage of proving that he can be valuable on special teams as he looks to carve out his spot.

It will not be easy for him to make this team, but compared to other units like the defensive line, the offensive line, and the wide receiving corps, there are many fewer obstacles he will need to deal with.

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