Legendary Linebacker Carl Banks is in the New York Giants Ring of Honor and was named to the NFL’s 1980s All-Decade Team. He helped the G-Men hoist two Lombardi Trophies as a member of the Big Blue Wrecking Crew.
Banks also played for the Cleveland Browns for two seasons and is a current analyst for MSG Network. He can be found on Giants Training Camp Live this August (Monday-Thursday, 6 p.m.), covering his former team along with fellow Giants legends Amani Toomer, Shaun O’Hara, and David Diehl.
In an interview with GMEN HQ, the former All-Pro linebacker broke down Big Blue’s upcoming season and what he’s seen so far through training camp.
Banks has been impressed with the new coaching staff and can already sense a difference from last year’s training camp.
"“I think they’re doing a good job. I think the players are engaged, energized and excited, which tells me that the coaching staff is connecting with them. Seems like they’re going through practices with very little complaints about how things are run, which is always a good thing.” “Yeah, you don’t hear Pat Shurmur a lot. He’s more direct with his players when he does his corrections, so very seldom, if ever, have I seen him screaming audibly where everyone can hear it. It’s a more direct approach.”"
Banks won’t sugarcoat things for fans as an analyst. He gives an honest break down of New York’s roster, which attributes to some of the joys and difficulties he has covering his former team.
"“It’s a difficulty and a joy to walk out on the practice field with a roster sheet looking at numbers and looking at players because there’s so many new faces. Then learning those guys and learning what they do well, so that I can come on the network and give fans a real fair and clear assessment of how they should view the team. There are so many times where you get the home team analyst that only wants to give you the rosy picture. I think one of the things that we are fortunately able to do is to give a fair assessment without having to sugarcoat it. That’s what Giants fans want. They’re not the group that wants the rosy picture all the time. They want to know if a guy needs to improve on something, and we’re there for that information.”"
Banks, who is also known for his work with Starter apparel and his G-III brand, is helping fans get ready for the upcoming season, particularly Thursday Night Football.
"“We have a lot going on. One of the things the fans can really look forward to is a Thursday night gridiron collection. It kind of celebrates Thursday Night Football, and we are doing it for every team limited edition.” “It’s even more special for the Giants because we have this Thursday night gridiron collection players only edition. Where it’s only going to be players, but we will make sure there are some pieces available for some special fans.”"
On the gridiron, Banks was a limited edition linebacker. The Big Blue Wrecking Crew would beat opponents into submission, something Giants fans are hoping the current unit can bring back.
Of course, in an interview with the Giant great, we had to ask about New York’s linebacking corps. Giants general manager Dave Gettleman put an emphasis on bolstering the middle of Big Blue’s defense in his first offseason, acquiring players like Alec Ogletree, Kareem Martin, Lorenzo Carter, and Connor Barwin.
The play at the linebacker position will be crucial to team’s success under James Bettcher. The Giants’ new defensive coordinator led Arizona to three consecutive top-six finishes during his tenure in the desert.
Banks is looking forward to seeing the upgraded unit in action.
"“I’m excited. I’m excited to watch this group. Obviously, I have an affinity to the 3-4 defense. I think they have great size, length, and athleticism at the position.” “Ogletree is such a great pro and a very very good player. He’s going to help them out a lot.” “I think it’s going to be a very aggressive defense. I think they are going to generate a great pass rush. They’ll be good sack numbers. There should be some good turnover numbers. But it really comes down to the fundamentals on first and second down too. I think you’ve got a smart group of players that should be able to learn his system and grow in it. That system, the way he runs it, he can become a mad scientist. The more information that his players can take in and play fast with, the more he is going to give them. Meaning you can just do so many things when you have players that are interchangeable, and he has that with this linebacking group."
While the new-look linebacking corps is showing promise under Bettcher, Big Blue’s secondary has plenty of questions both at cornerback and safety. When asked if he had any concerns regarding the secondary, Banks gave an in-depth response.
"“Sure, you have one guy who’s a proven pro. I’m confident that he’ll bounce back, Janoris Jenkins. Another corner (Eli Apple) that has all the athleticism in the world. He had a good start to his career, and it was interrupted last year. So he’s basically back into his second year as a pro. Will he be a good pro? I am very hopeful. I think he can be something special, meaning Eli Apple. You know his attitude is really the only thing that was holding back his progress. It seems like that is all in the right directions now. I think he is going to make a contribution, but then after that who do you have? Listen, if a team lines up with three or four wide receivers, you’ve not only got to look at your cornerback depth but you’ve got to look at your safety depth too.” “That’s another area of the defensive backfield that you can’t really feel that comfortable with is your safety position. (Darian) Thompson played last year. You’re hoping he makes the leap that Landon Collins made from one year to the next. It was a tough year for Thompson last year. He didn’t tackle particularly well. He’s very athletic, but you could tell that he hadn’t caught up with the speed of the game yet last year coming off that foot injury. Hopefully, seeing him making the mistakes, similarly to what Landon Collins did, he can come back a completely different safety.”"
The Giants have been rotating four different starting free safeties alongside Collins in practice. Curtis Riley is currently listed as the starter on the team’s unofficial depth chart. Thompson is No. 2.
Improved play at the back end of the defense and the offensive line are the two things Banks is looking forward to watching this preseason.
"“I want to see progress from the offensive line. I want to see the safety position for the Giants and see if that gets solidified. Not just based on interceptions but the way these players are fitting around the football. Those are the two areas I want to see. The cornerback position, hopefully they discover a third or fourth corner, and if he’s not there, the Giants are No. 2 on the waiver list. They’ve got to figure it out before the season starts, but I’m sure they will.”"
Banks is also looking forward to watching punter Riley Dixon in his first action as a New York Giant. Special teams play will have a significant impact on whether Big Blue is able to turn it around in 2018.
On the offensive side of the ball, it’s no secret the Giants heavily invested in their ground game. They spent top dollar in free agency to land left tackle Nate Solder and selected Saquon Barkley with the No. 2 overall pick in the 2018 NFL Draft.
Banks believes the Giants made the right decision taking the Penn State running back and not a quarterback.
"“Yup, absolutely. I think when you look at the class that came out and you look at the learning curve. Let’s just say an average quarterback, it takes them a couple years to really get acclimated and learn the game of football. If you got a good one, it’s going to probably take you a year to a year and half but there’s no guarantee. The position with most mistakes ever in the history of football has been the quarterback position. So it’s a 10-year proposition either way. If you take a bad quarterback and he can’t play, you just spent four years and then you spend another three to four years trying to get around to see if the next guy can play.” “You shouldn’t be in too big of a hurry to get rid of a proven quarterback when he still has the ability. You build around him and make sure the tools fit his skill-set, and then you can offset some of things he doesn’t do well anymore with different play calls and different players. That’s why a guy like Barkley is important. If you want to see a perfect example of that, there’s a 41-year-old quarterback who looks brand new every year. If you look at how they structure the team around him and the plays they call for him, you can see why. His deficiencies don’t show up as a much because they put together a good system and offensive plan every year based on his skill-set.”"
Giants fans are undoubtedly excited to see No. 26 in action. But as Banks explains, Barkley will only be as effective as the players around him.
"“He’s dangerous as a runner and as a pass-catcher. Having him takes a lot of pressure off a lot of areas of the football field, particularly at the quarterback position. But none of it works unless the offensive line is functioning well.”"
Banks wasn’t ready to give a full evaluation of Big Blue’s new offensive line. He’s waiting for preseason games to determine how the unit has improved. He believes the “jury is still out” on Ereck Flowers’ transition to right tackle, and thinks if, given the chance, Brett Jones will win the starting center position.
Jon Halapio is currently listed as the team’s first-string center.
As Banks said, he thinks the Giants made the right decision staying with No. 10 and drafting Barkley. He’s not worried about a drop off in play from the 37-year-old two-time Super Bowl MVP.
"“I see a very live arm. His football IQ you never worry about. You never worry about him picking up a system. You see a live arm. You see a guy with accuracy. I’m not worried about a decline there. He’s got a lot to work with right now. He’s still learning and learning the players around him as well.”"
The play along with the offensive line and establishing a ground game will be critical to the team’s offensive success. Shurmur led Minnesota to the league’s seventh-best rushing attack last year. That’s also with the Vikings losing electric rookie running back Dalvin Cook after just four games.
Giants fans can only hope Shurmur has a similar impact on Big Blue as he had on Minnesota. The Vikings saw improved offensive line play, and quarterback Case Keenum had a career-year in his lone season under the Giants new head coach.
Shurmur has helped multiple quarterbacks improve during his coaching career, but to think Big Blue could be Super Bowl-bound in 2018 is likely a stretch.
Banks believes Gettleman has put enough pieces in place for the Giants to contend for the playoffs in the final years of Manning’s career. However, he believes the Super Bowl is an entirely different conversation.
"“I think he’s (Gettleman) put the pieces in place to make the playoffs. You know, Super Bowl there’s alot that goes in to that. I think they have to do the work in the regular season to get to the playoffs. I think once they are there, they’ll be able to determine that.”"
As stated before, Banks wants to give the fans an honest opinion of his former team as an analyst. He’s not going to mislead fans and paint everything positive. That’s why his prediction for the 2018 season shouldn’t be surprising.
"“I’m going to make a bold prediction.” “They will win somewhere between four and 16 games. They are going to win more than three and as many as 16. They will improve.”"
Well, at least he’s willing to say Big Blue will improve in 2018. Coming from Banks, Giants fans can know that’s an honest assessment.