The New York Giants loss of wide receiver Wan'Dale Robinson to their former head coach and current Tennessee Titans offensive coordinator, Brian Daboll, isn't surprising. However, seeing cornerback Cor'Dale Flott follow suit is nothing short of a letdown, especially after details regarding his free agency emerged.
Signs pointed toward Flott and the Giants reaching an agreement on a contract extension. In fact, SNY's Connor Hughes called it "as done of a deal as you can get without pen-to-paper." Alas, Daboll and the Titans made a "last-second" pitch that was evidently too good to refuse, leaving a massive void in New York's secondary.
Seeing Flott join the list of Giants heading to Tennessee is bad enough. Yet, hearing that it was practically a foregone conclusion he'd return to New York makes his exit sting even more.
Details of Cor'Dale Flott joining Titans in free agency rub salt in Giants fans' wound
Tennessee went above and beyond to court Flott. Of course, they swooped in with a massive offer to show him how much he means to them. But money aside, Titans head coach Robert Saleh laid out the "entire plan" on how he plans to deploy the 2022 third-round pick, per Hughes.
Hughes noted that the Titans' efforts to lure Flott proved to be the "difference." Kudos to Saleh and Daboll, who deserve credit for being persuasive recruiters, though that's the last thing the Giants can afford to hear.
New York is arguably the biggest American sports market. The Giants are ushering in a new era of football with a future Hall of Fame head coach in John Harbaugh. They're supposed to be the ones attracting talent, not ceding high ground, particularly to a lower-tier franchise like the Titans.
Flott's departure is a bad look for the Giants. It's a microcosm of their shortcomings under general manager Joe Schoen, who's seeing players prefer to reunite with Daboll, and an indictment of Harbaugh. Talk about a double whammy of blows to Big Blue Nation.
Robinson was widely expected to go to the Titans. The same can't be said for tight end Daniel Bellinger, who's also Tennessee-bound, though his lack of involvement in New York's offense foreshadowed a breakup. Flott's truly the one that got away.