Ross Cockrell

New York Giants: 3 cornerbacks to consider in free agency to fill void CB2 spot

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xavier rhodes, New York Giants

The New York Giants revamped their secondary from 2019 to 2020. They brought in a bunch of new faces this past offseason, signing Logan Ryan and James Bradberry, and the Giants drafted Xavier McKinney in the second-round.

Their secondary was the fifth-worst pass defense in 2019. They allowed 264.1 passing yards per game in 2019, but in 2020, only allowed 237.9 passing yards per game. The Giants were in the middle of the pack for best pass defense, coming in at 16th.

Safety’s Logan Ryan, Jabrill Peppers, and Xavier McKinney are the future, and Bradberry island is a real thing. The G-Men just need another cornerback to go alongside Bradberry.

Here are three free agents the Giants should consider in free agency:

Xavier Rhodes

Xavier Rhodes was one of the top cornerbacks in the NFL this past season, but in 2017-2019, he struggled. The Minnesota Vikings decided to part ways with Rhodes this past offseason. Rhodes signed a one-year, $3,250,000 million deal with the Indianapolis Colts.

Rhodes recorded 42 tackles, 12 pass defends, and two interceptions this past season. With these solid stats, Rhodes could earn himself a pay increase but not too much where it will be out of the Giants’ price range.

If the Giants could find some money to give to Rhodes and if the secondary could repeat what they did this past season, this could easily be one of the best secondaries in 2021.

Jason McCourty

Will Logan Ryan recruit Jason McCourty to New York? The New York native just finished up his two-year deal with the New England Patriots — could McCourty team up with Joe Judge down in New York to finish his career?

McCourty has been a versatile cornerback who has played as an above-average outside cornerback for almost his entire career. McCourty has 723 career tackles, 106 pass defends, and 18 interceptions, and a Super Bowl Ring with Judge.

If McCourty wants to come to New York and leave his twin brother, the Giants have the capital to bring him in. He will have an opportunity to play alongside a Pro Bowl cornerback in Bradberry if he wants to.

Ross Cockrell

It seems like Ross Cockrell’s name is always in talks to come back to New York. With the Giants now having a better all-around team and an excellent secondary, he could come in and compete for the starting job on the outside.

Cockrell is currently on the Tampa Bay Buccaneers; they are on their way to go play in the NFC Championship game against the Green Bay Packers. With the Buccaneers stud cornerbacks, Cockrell has seen the least amount of playing time since his rookie season. Starting only two games and only recorded two pass breakups.

Cockrell only got a one-year deal with the Buccaneers for less than a million. But I will speak for all Giants fans here, we do not want another Cockrell fake signing again. Cockrell backed out of a deal this past offseason.

One signing the New York Giants need to make to shore up secondary

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New York Giants, Ross Cockrell

The New York Giants allowed 17 straight points in a week two defeat against the Chicago Bears in the first half. They backed up that performance with a second-half gem, not allowing a single scoring possession for the Bears.

Despite their strong effort, the points they did give up were a direct result of poor coverage from the CB2 position. Corey Ballentine allowed one touchdown, and Isaac Yiadom missed multiple tackles that would have helped the Giants limit their points allowed.

The Giants simply can’t go on with Isaac Yiadom and Corey Ballentine as their second options at cornerback, considering they both looked lost against the Chicago Bears for a majority of the game.

Check out this play, where the Bears are attempting a 3rd-and-1 conversion, but Yiadom simply runs the opposite direction and then proceeds to miss a clear-cut tackle that would have minimized the gain from David Montgomery.

Moving on to the touchdown Ballentine allowed against Darnell Mooney. Mitchell Trubisky had about six seconds in the pocket, which benefited Mooney entirely, but Ballentine’s positioning and lack of aggressiveness attacking the ball was borderline embarrassing.

In this clip, not only does Ballentine get beat immediately, but he loses positioning and ends up falling at the heals of Mooney, who easily secures the touchdown and walks into the sunset. Even though this was essentially a protection touchdown, Ballentine’s fundamentals completely failed him on this play, something James Bradberry or most other starting corners in the NFL might not succumb to.

Ballantine currently has a 41.6 overall grade, per PFF. He has allowed six receptions, which ranks 47th in the league.

How can the New York Giants solve this problem at CB2?

One option that makes a lot of sense for Big Blue is Ross Cockrell, who came close to signing a deal with New York before walking away. While it might have been a monetary issue, Cockrell would provide a major upgrade as a second cornerback position and actually make the Giants a competitive team.

That second spot manned by Yiadom and Ballantine is a major liability and has been the product of multiple touchdowns for opposing offenses. Signing a player like Cockrell would immediately make the defense better.

In 2019, Cockrell started 11 games and made 14 appearances for the Carolina Panthers alongside Bradberry. He tallied 62 combined tackles, eight passes defended, and two interceptions. Over the past four seasons, he has eight recorded turnovers. More relevant, he posted a 55.2% completion rate against, allowing just one touchdown. Overall, he is a more than capable corner that would immediately upgrade the position. It is possible he wants a multi-year deal, but at this point in time, the Giants have an opportunity to make their defense far better, and resisting the temptation will only hurt them.

New York Giants make two signings, boost WR and CB positions

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New York Giants, Ross Cockrell

The New York Giants have been proactive over the weekend, making two moves to add competition to wide receiver and cornerback. With DeAndre Baker and Sam Beal likely missing the 2020 campaign, the Giants have been looking to supplement the corner position. With the lack of a better experience and a void at CB2, Big Blue hosted Ross Cockrell on Friday.

Cockrell last spent time with the Giants in 2017, when he played in 16 games and started in nine. He racked up 50 tackles, 11 passes defended, and three interceptions. He is a high character player with a great work ethic.

New York Giants sign a corner:

According to Art Stapleton, the Giants agreed to terms with Cockrell, who will compete at cornerback with Julian Love, Darnay Holmes, Corey Ballentine, and Chris Williamson.
Cockrell has spent five seasons in the NFL, playing with the Carolina Panthers in 2019. Starting int 11 games, he logged up 62 combined tackles, three tackles for loss, eight passes defended, two interceptions, and a 55.2% completion rate against. Allowing just one touchdown, he was actually quite efficient for the Panthers in coverage. His lofted 16.2% missed tackle rate was the most glaring negative of his statistics.

However, having started so many games last season, he’s a perfect fit on a cheap deal for the Giants.

With the team saving $9.9 million in cap space due to Nate Solder opting out, the ideal move would be to move as much money as possible over to the 2021 season.

The Giants made another move on Saturday, signing former Michigan State wide receiver Cody White. Over 13 games, he posted 922 yards and six touchdowns over 66 receptions.

The Giants have brought in a bevy of undrafted free agent wide receivers to compete for the number four spot on the roster, including Binjimen Victor, Austin Mack, and Derek Dillon. White will now insert himself into the mix, but without a preseason to work with, it will be difficult for these players to earn a spot on the roster. However, the practice squad seems like the end result for most of the UDFAs.

 

 

 

The Giants Need A Cornerback, Here Are Their Best Remaining Options

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With the New York Giants boasting Janoris Jenkins and Eli Apple at cornerback, there is still a lack of overall talent at the position. Finding value with minimal cap will be a priority of GM Dave Gettleman.

Here are a few remaining options on the FA market:

 

1.) Bashaud Breeland

Breeland has proved to be injury prone over the years, but when he’s healthy, he’s a decent corner. He had an atrocious 2016 season, and while he improved in 2017, it wasn’t enough for Washington to bring him back.

The Giants could likely grab him on a minimum deal and hope that he can reach his full potential in a different environment.

2.) Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie

Good old DRC. We love the guy, but he’s getting old and certainly can’t survive an entire season as a starting outside corner anymore. His cap-hit was previously $6 million. He refused to take a significant pay-cut which ultimately led to his release.

Moving forward, it’s possible we reunite with the veteran corner, even after making visits to the Washington Redskins and others. He would have to agree to a deal in the $3-4 million per-season range, but having him back would be a cultural power move and a familiar face for the remaining Giants.

3.) Adam Pacman-Jones

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Pacman-Jones is a 12-year veteran and brings experience and leadership to the locker room. He only played and started in nine games last season, but before that he had only missed two-games in five years.

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He’s a punt-returning specialist and pass-defending connoisseur. In the past five seasons, Jones has racked up 49 passes defended and 11 interceptions. He earned $6 million last year, but would likely garner only a fraction of that with the Giants. His services aren’t worth $6 million anymore, and would likely settle for a veteran deal in the $3 million range.

4.) Marcus Cooper

Cooper is somewhat of a journeyman in the NFL, spending time on the Kansas City Chiefs, Arizona Cardinals, and Chicago Bears. As a five-year veteran (28 years old), he knows the game and would bring experience  to a Giants team that’s on a youth movement.

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In 2016, Cooper had four interceptions before being shipped off to the Bears. If he was given the opportunity to become comfortable on a single team and learn the defense, he might be a quality player to have around. Additionally, he would be affordable, landing in the $3 million per-season range.

 

Speculating What The New York Giants 3-4 Defense May Look Like

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With free-agency among us, there is a lot of change coming for the New York Giants defense. A look at what going from a 4-3 defense to a 3-4 may require some outside-the-box thinking.

With a linebacker core that has been the glaring hole in the Giants defense, new GM Dave Gettleman began to address that quickly by trading for proven veteran Alec Ogletree. But this is not the only change coming for the Giants roster.

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Linebacker

Looking at what might change for the defensive line and linebacker core, I cannot help but think about Jason Pierre-Paul and Olivier Vernon and what their role may become. Both OV and JPP are proven edge rushers and can both play the run as well; both have played with the hand in the dirt and off the line as well.

Although their pass-coverage has gone fairly untested, it is possible that they could transition into an edge rusher/ OLB role. This could be the answer for a James Bettcher defense that loves blitzing the quarterback.

Defensive Line

That change would bring some change to the defensive line as well. Damon (Snacks) Harrison is one of the best run-stoppers in the NFL and Dalvin Tomlinson looks to improve off of an impressive rookie season, ranking as the top rookie interior defender in the league.

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Adding some depth to the defensive line would be a must. Resigning Jay Bromley, who has been serviceable for the Giants over the past few years, would be a cheaper option to add depth. Bringing in one of the many quality defensive line free agent options is likely as well.

Secondary

The change in scheme may not effect the Giants secondary as much as the rest of the defense. But with Dominic Rodgers-Cromartie’s recent release, Eli Apple’s 2017 tailspin, and Janoris Jenkins coming off ankle surgery, there are more than just a few questions with the secondary.

Bringing in more depth is a must to help support Landon Collins and co. in the secondary. Ross Cockrell played well down the stretch of the season and should provide some optimism for this group (three interceptions).