What Deonte Banks has proven after two seasons is that he is not a complete waste of a first-round draft pick like DeAndre Baker and Kadarius Toney.
Whether he gets lumped in with too many other Giants’ playable underachievers from the first round over the last decade — Ereck Flowers, Eli Apple and Evan Neal, specifically — or he is able to salvage his career as an effective starting cornerback should be determined next season.
“I’m always confident, but I feel like I have to be more consistent and then I’ll be straight,” Banks told The Post. “You have to be more consistent in how you approach things and be consistent in your play — consistent with your eyes, consistent with your keys, stuff like that.”
Banks took a step backward in his second NFL season, when he allowed 49 catches for 689 yards and six touchdowns, according to Pro Football Focus.
It would be a stretch for the Giants to do an honest offseason self-assessment and not prioritize adding a No. 1 cornerback to bump Banks back into the No. 2 role that he played for most of his promising rookie season.
“I really do know what it’s about now,” Banks said. “I didn’t know some stuff, but I think I know what I need to do and what’s being asked of me. I want to follow the No. 1 [receiver]. But I don’t get into that whole label. I’m cool with whatever. I just want to go out and play and do what I do.”
Banks became one of the poster boys for a horrid season because of a couple magnified plays against the Cowboys and Eagles after which the coaching staff openly questioned his tackling effort. It often seemed like the blame — plenty of other candidates could have shared responsibility — weighed down his demeanor.
“Obviously he would like to have a little bit more production than what he’s had,” said defensive coordinator Shane Bowen, who was put on the hot seat this week by owner John Mara. “Hopefully we can get there and he can continue to progress to that. But he’s got the right mindset. It’s just a matter of continuing to grow up.”
Since Banks “came back and battled,” in Bowen’s words, with hard work over the final two months after scrutiny on him reached its peak, a better poster for Banks’ face would’ve been one that shared general manager Joe Schoen’s warning not to draft for need or scheme.
The Giants entered the 2023 draft with a hole at starting corner opposite Adoree’ Jackson, and Banks profiled as an ideal fit in then-coordinator Wink Martindale’s man-to-man coverage defense. They traded up one slot to get him after a late-first-round run on equally desirable receivers.
Bowen’s scheme was the opposite of Martindale’s and utilized zone coverage about two-thirds of the time, according to PFF. Did some underestimate before the season the impact that the change would have on Banks?
“I never did,” said Banks, who is “100 percent” hoping to keep the same scheme headed into Year 3. “I’d know what this play is and what I have to do here. Bring it into offseason training and know that, know my techniques.”
One teaching point that needs development is Banks making a play on the ball when he has his back turned in tight coverage. He finished the season with 12 passes defended, one forced fumble and no interceptions.
“When in doubt,” defensive backs coach Jermone Henderson said, “find the ball.”
Receivers made a habit of essentially picking catches off the top of Banks’ helmet.
“Just got to make sure he gets his head around and finds the ball quicker,” Bowen said. “You’re running 4.4, 4.3 [second] speed down the field, and all of a sudden you’ve got to be able to locate the ball and have confidence and make yourself comfortable in those uncomfortable positions.”
That is a good start for making the Giants more comfortable with counting on Banks as a building block.
