After months of waiting, the NFL Draft officially began on Thursday night. Only two cornerbacks and no wide receivers were picked in the Top 19 of the draft, which left the NY Giants in a great spot as the night entered the 20s.
Four consecutive wide receivers were drafted from picks 20-23, which made the Giants faithful a little worried. Joe Schoen quickly dispelled those worries, stepped up to the plate, and made a big trade to move up one spot. That trade and his ensuing selection made his defensive coordinator Wink Martindale absolutely ecstatic. Welcome to East Rutherford Deonte Banks.
MOOOOOOOOOOOD pic.twitter.com/bupcKPC39i
— New York Giants (@Giants) April 28, 2023
Wink Martindale was fired up to add Deonte Banks to the Giants defense
Nobody in Giants Nation had a better reaction to the Giants selection of Banks than Wink. Wink absolutely bear-hugged Joe Schoen to celebrate. Wink is not exactly a little guy, and Schoen is a little guy, so that hug had to hurt, but it was a good kind of hurt for Schoen.
Wink has every reason to be fired up. In his blitz-heavy defense, his corners are left on islands, and play almost exclusively man-to-man coverage. In 2022, Banks played 618 snaps on an island. Opposing quarterbacks completed just 43.3 percent of pass attempts when targeting him.
At 6-0, 197 pounds, Banks is the perfect build for a modern cornerback. Oh, by the way, he is an athletic freak. At the 2023 NFL Combine, Banks led all corners with a 42-inch vertical jump and finished second with an 11-foot, 4-inch broad jump. That broad jump ranks third all-time among cornerbacks in Combine history. He also ran a blazing 4.35 40-yard dash.
All of Wink's great defenses in Baltimore had two great cornerbacks, and there is a potential that could happen in New York as early as 2023. Wink knows that his defense has to play six games against divisional opponents, all of whom have star receivers.
When Wink's defense faces Terry McLaurin, Curtis Samuel, Jahan Dotson, AJ Brown, DeVonta Smith, CeeDee Lamb, and Brandin Cooks, he will now have two versatile corners in Banks and Adoree' Jackson to deploy to stop those talented players. It's a pass-first league. Wink is thrilled he finally has the neccesarry weapons to slow those passing attacks.
READ MORE: Here's why Giants fans should be thrilled Joe Schoen added Deonte Banks