In what has been a memorable past two weeks of preseason action, the NY Giants rookies have been exceeding expectations. It goes without saying, but No. 24 overall pick Deonte Banks is living up to the hype for the G-Men.
From the moment NY traded up in the first round to land the star cornerback, people have been dreaming of Banks being a stud defensive back for Wink Martindale. In the loss over the Lions and the win over the Panthers this month, Banks has been fantastic. Just how good has he been?
Most coverage snaps played without allowing a catch this Preseason (Rookie CBs):
— PFF College (@PFF_College) August 22, 2023
🔒 Deonte Banks - 33 pic.twitter.com/mm0AM2BNcq
NY Giants CB Deonte Banks is already living up to the hype for Big Blue
Through two preseason games, Banks hasn't allowed a single reception in 33 coverage snaps. You can go ahead and say this is exactly what head man Brian Daboll and Martindale were hoping to see from the defensive back out of Maryland.
With Banks playing so well on the outside opposite of Tre Hawkins III, it's looking like two rookies will start at CB for the G-Men once Week 1 rolls around, with Adoree' Jackson manning the slot job. Who would have thought this would be the case a month ago?
Banks is stepping up and at the right time for this defense. Plenty of folks were worried that perhaps he wouldn't get the job done early on, but he's calming a lot of nerves with his strong play thus far. Yes, it's only the preseason, but you can't deny that the first-rounder has looked sharp.
Things will surely be more challenging for him in the regular season and even Aaron Rodgers will hope to make him look silly in Saturday's preseason showdown at MetLife Stadium. However, fans are confident that Banks will only continue to improve with the more reps he's given.