When the New York Giants drafted Corey Ballentine in the sixth round of the 2019 NFL draft, nobody actually expected him to earn starting reps. With his solid physical traits, Ballentine has the upside to develop into a quality corner, but sticking him into the fire during his rookie season backfired.
Of course, earning live game experience in the NFL will help him moving forward, but the thrashing he took was indicative of his late-round drafting. In 2019, he racked up 26 combined tackles, and two passes defended over 13 appearances. He logged a 64.3 completion percentage against and allowed four touchdowns, but showed he can tackle efficiently, missing just one tackle on 27 attempts.
With the 2020 regular season under a month away, Ballentine will have to expedite his development process. Former first-round corner DeAndre Baker was placed on the Commissioner’s Exempt List, and Sam Beal opted out of the 2020 season. This left a bevy of young players to compete for the CB2 spot. Aside from Ballentine, Julian Love, Darnay Holmes, Chris Williamson, and undrafted free agent Prince Smith will all be seeking starting reps.
The New York Giants are starting a problem right in the face:
The issue here is quite obvious, a lack of experience and proven talent could be hurtful at a starting corner position. Love has the most reps at corner coming from Notre Dame, but holmes represent the option with the most athletic upside.
Then there is Ballantine, who has stood out in recent days during practice. Of course, what we see on the practice field frequently doesn’t reflect during a live regular-season game. On Friday, he broke up several passes, including a potential touchdown in the red zone.
The young Washburn corner is seeking growth from his coaches, which is a positive step forward:
“The thing that I appreciate about Corey is that he wants to be coached,†defensive backs coach Jerome Henderson said. “He has come to me and said, ‘I want to be coached. I want to know, and I want feel like I can go out there and play confident.’ I’m making sure that he feels confident when he goes out, giving him instruction, and making sure that he can give it back to me. He’s a guy who has some ability. He’s in the mix, just like everybody else is, to play a big role for us. I’m excited to work with him.â€
Without a preseason to utilize, the Giants will have to stick with players that look good in training camp. Ultimately, that is not the recipe for success, but it is something they must do.