NY Giants Draft Grades: Rating every pick in the 2023 NFL Draft

The 2023 NFL Draft is officially in the books, and boy was it a wild weekend in Kansas City. In total, 259 players were drafted. Seven of those 259 players are now members of the New York Giants.

Joe Schoen, Brian Daboll, the Giants front office and coaching staff were very busy this weekend, doing everything possible to improve the franchise's roster. Schoen’s Trader Joe nickname from the 2022 NFL Draft was revived, but unlike last year when he traded down to accumulate more picks, this year he aggressively traded up to select his guys.

The Giants started the draft process with 11 picks, but after multiple trades, Big Blue only ended up making seven selections. Darren Waller was traded to the Giants for a third-round pick, so he is technically part of the 2023 draft haul Schoen pulled in. It’s time for everyone’s favorite post-draft exercise: draft grades. Let’s grade every pick from Schoen’s second draft at the helm. Spoiler alert: he nailed the weekend.

Round 1, Pick 25: Maryland CB Deonte Banks
Grade: A

What’s not to like about Deonte Banks? Banks was one of the biggest risers in the pre-draft process, mainly due to his absurd athleticism. After seeing the top two cornerbacks and top four wide receivers coming off the board, Schoen smartly moved up one spot to select his guy. After seeing the Giants get leapfrogged for DeVonta Smith in 2021, Giants Nation can't be mad that we sacrificed a fifth-rounder and a seventh-rounder in order to select Banks.

At the 2023 NFL Combine, Banks ran a blazing 4.35 40-yard dash, posted the third best defensive back broad jump in NFL Combine history, and recorded a ridiculous 42-inch vertical. Banks also posted a 9.99 Relative Athletic Score (RAS), which ranks third out of 2,212 scored defensive banks from 1987 to 2023.

Banks is a great fit on the Giants roster. Banks excels in man to man coverage and nobody leaves their corners in man to man situations more than Wink Martindale. Opposing quarterbacks completed just 43.3 percent of passes when targeting Banks in 2022. Banks was left on an island against Ohio State superstar Marvin Harrison Jr. in November, and gave up just 53 yards, which was the most he allowed in a single game in 2022.

Banks fills the biggest need on the Giants roster, CB2. The Giants finally have a CB duo in Banks and Adoree' Jackson - this will put fear into opposing offensive coordinators. Jackson only has one year left on his contract. If he departs next spring, the Giants already have his CB1 replacement

The only negative on Banks is he commits too many penalties, but that can be coached out of him. He brings an edge and physicality the Giants defense desperately craves.