If you asked 100 New York Giants fans before the season who they expected to be the best player in the secondary, none of them would have answered with Cor'Dale Flott. While it doesn't help to see Jevon Holland and Paulson Adebo hurt, the 24-year-old has broken out in a major way this season.
Since beating out Deonte Banks for the CB2 job, the fourth-year corner has been one of the lone bright spots for Shane Bowen's group. That's why it was no surprise when Pro Football Focus' Bradley Locklear labeled Flott the most pleasant surprise for an Giants' defense among the worst in the NFL.
Flott's 79.6 coverage grade is fourth among all cornerbacks who have played 200-plus snaps and is surrendering just a 62.6 passer rating when targeted, which ranks eighth among qualified CBs. And to make things even more interesting, his breakout campaign has come in a contract year.
Cor'Dale Flott is practically forcing the Giants to award him with a contract extension
A 2022 third-round pick out of LSU, Flott is reminding fans that some breakouts come better late than never. Not every player sets the league on fire in their rookie or sophomore season, but now that he's earned the playing time, he's making it impossible to keep him off the field.
His emergence was a key reason Deonte Banks was seeing trade buzz prior to the trade deadline, but Joe Schoen wound up keeping the former first-round pick in East Rutherford. But now that he is pursuing a long-term deal, it will put Schoen and Brian Daboll in a serious pickle this offseason.
Moreover. both Holland and Adebo have struggled while on the field while Andru Phillips and Tyler Nubin have regressed from last season, so it's Flott who has been the most impressive this season. The sample size is small, so fans should want to see more of the same in the second half of the year.
New York could tag him, but there is no reason to let him walkâespecially when he could be retained on a semi-affordable contract. And if there's one thing Schoen knows how to do, it's effectively negotiating free agent deals.
Something worth noting is that it would be a complete shock if Bowen is somehow still the DC entering next season, but it would be just as surprising if Daboll and Schoen are still employed by Big Blue if the losing streak continues.
With that being said, Bowen is a complete hack, so it begs the question what the youngster could accomplish under an actually qualified defensive coordinator.