Giant Cornerback Thoughts

While the Giants need a serious and significant upgrade at the safety position, I do not think we will see a complete overhaul at the cornerback position. There might be some changes (either adding a veteran for depth or a corner somewhere in the middle rounds of the draft), but overall the G-men are in pretty good shape at cornerback.

Corey Webster:
After signing a big money contract extension in 2008 (5 years, $43.5 million), Webster began 2009 looking like a shut-down corner, only to give up big plays (none bigger than the Vincent Jackson touchdown late in the 4th quarter against the Chargers in Week 9) as the season progressed. Still, Webster is only 27 years old and has shown to be very solid when the Giants pass rush is reasonably effective. Webster will return to the starting lineup in 2010 with Giants expectations. Webster’s age, talent, and past performance have the arrow pointing up in 2010.

Terrell Thomas:
Give Jerry Reese credit for grabbing Thomas with the last pick in the second round in 2008; Thomas has improved each year and led the G-men in interceptions, grabbing 5 picks in 2009. Thomas also make great strides in defending the run as 2009 progressed. Thomas is aggressive, an improving tackler, and is an integral part of the secondary moving forward. I would be surprised to see Aaron Ross get his starting job back in 2010, and a corner combo of Webster and Thomas can be very successful is the G-men plug other, major holes this offseason.

Bruce Johnson:
An undrafted free agent out of Miami, Johnson saw more action on the field than expected with the season long injuries and struggles of Aaron Ross and Kevin Dockery. Johnson surprised early (nice pick in Week 2 against Romo and the boys), but showed throughout the season why his name was not called on draft day. Giants fan groans could be heard loud and clear as time and time Johnson was in position to make a play, only to fail to locate or make a play on the ball. My bet is Johnson returns, but his roster spot is less than guaranteed.

Aaron Ross:
Ok, admittedly, Ross should be left for our cornerback discussion, but he did play out of position at Safety for the latter part of the year, with mixed results. Not sure if he will be effective in a nickel role defending smaller, quicker receivers, but also not sure he gets his starting spot back from second year man, Terrell Thomas, who played well in his absence. Giants faithful can only hope that his overly sensitive hammy is fully healed and that Ross stays on the field. But, Ross is clearly not a safety and should return to his natural position of cornerback.

Kevin Dockery:
Prior to 2009, I was Dockery fan, I enjoyed watching the under-sized corner play aggressive in-your-face coverage, with mostly positive results from the nickel spot. But Dockery regressed this past season; Dockery was oft-injured and when he played, he played badly, missing tackles in the run game and consistently allowing receivers to simply run by him. Dockery is a restricted free agent, and I would not be surprised if the was non-tendered by the Giants. Expect the Giants to add either a veteran or young player through the draft to compete for the nickel back position.