New York Giants: Top 10 First Round Draft Picks of All-Time
By Mike Luca
4. Carl Banks, LB (1984, #3)
It is unavoidable to pay tribute to two distinguished linebackers of the Big Blue Wrecking Crew as individuals without first praising them together.
Carl Banks and Lawrence Taylor each exceeded their lofty top-three expectations. Together, they infused personality as lethal as the defense’s play and both retain those reputations to this day.
The more dynamic sack-artist Taylor garners the brunt of recognition by accepting room to breathe, thanks to the profoundly All-Decade run-stopper in Banks. Though tackles were less noteworthy statistics even in the ’80s, Banks proved to be a machine especially in clutch moments as shown above. The Michigan State product fueled the surrounding efforts of Harry Carson and Company slightly more so than he benefited from theirs.
- Pro Football Hall of Fame 2nd team All-1980s Team
- 1987 1st Team All-Conf. UPI
- 1987 1st Team All-NFL Associated Press
- 1987 1st Team All-NFL Pro Football Writers
- 1987 1st Team All-NFL Newspaper Ent. Assoc.
- 1987 1st Team All-NFL Sporting News
Credit Banks, also, for checking and channeling his emotions more routinely than LT in that regard. Whereas Taylor’s negative press outdid Banks’ cleaner record, the positive hysteria never quite lined up either…
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