Giants Now: ESPN selects Tae Banks as X-factor

ESPN selects Tae Banks as Giants’ X-factor

The wait is over – Week 1 is finally here.

In the lead up to this week’s season opener, ESPN went through every team across the NFL and chose one X-factor for each club.

The selection for the Giants was second-year cornerback Tae Banks.

“The 2023 first-round pick took his rookie lumps last season, but the clear signs of belonging were there: speed, size, ball skills, recognition,” wrote ESPN’s Ben Solak. “He held his own, often in isolated man coverage as defensive coordinator Wink Martindale left him on an island. The Giants ranked second in man coverage last season, but new defensive coordinator Shane Bowen runs a more diverse blend of coverages. That will particularly help Banks, whose zone feel was impressive in college.

Solak added, “Banks is high on my list of players to take a sophomore leap. I expect him to be the final Infinity Stone in an improved Giants defense.”

A lot was put onto Banks’ plate during his rookie season. He started 15 games and was thrown right into the fire against some of the league’s best wide receivers. The young corner finished with two interceptions and 11 passes defensed to go with his 64 tackles (53 solo) and two tackles for loss.

Banks also earned a passer rating against of 84.7, according to Pro Football Focus, which ranked 24th out of 74 qualified cornerbacks, in addition to allowing a 57.6 completion rate (53 receptions allowed on 92 targets).

With the addition of Brian Burns to go with Kayvon Thibodeaux and Dexter Lawrence, a trio that combined for 148 total quarterback pressures last season, the Giants’ pass rush is expected to make a jump in 2024. This should help put Banks in more favorable positions, even against another tough slate of opposing No. 1 receivers.

“Tae is up for the challenge of wanting to prove that he can be a number one corner in this league,” assistant general manager Brandon Brown told the media a few weeks ago. “He knows that he’s got to earn it and that’s not going to be given to him.”

Banks flashed his athleticism at times throughout his rookie season and again this spring and summer, but in case anyone forgot, he scored an impressive 9.99 RAS at last year’s NFL Combine (out of a possible 10.00). This ranked as the third-best score out of 2,212 cornerbacks from 1987 to 2023.