If 2020 couldn’t get any more crazy, former New York Giants cornerback DeAndre Baker’s legal issues took a significant twist on Monday afternoon.
After being indicted on armed robbery charges, Baker was placed on the commissioner’s exempt list, which followed by his departure from the Giants.
However, on Monday, he was exonerated from all charges after William Dean, the attorney of three of the four victims, was arrested for extortion relating to the legal case. Baker, who claimed innocence from the beginning, has suffered through a tumultuous past few months, but it seems as if his freedom is now confirmed, and is eligible to return to the NFL as soon as possible.
The question is, would the New York Giants consider bringing back Baker after the legal issues? Seemingly, it seems as if head coach Joe Judge has no interest in reuniting with the former first-round pick, who caused plenty of issues for himself in the coaching staff during the off-season as the legal battle unfolded in Broward County, Florida.
Judge stated on Monday, “we wish him the best of luck for the future. We made the decision we thought was best for our program.â€
It is clear that the Giants have no interest in bringing him back, which is probably for the best considering they have a new coaching staff in place and are making significant strides every passing week. Injecting a player with red flags into the mix might not be the best cultural move, but that doesn’t mean Baker doesn’t deserve a second chance in the NFL.
Joe Judge on DeAndre Baker: "We wish him the best of luck for this future. We made the decision we thought was best for our program."
Safe to say the book is closed on a reunion.
— Dan Duggan (@DDuggan21) November 16, 2020
“No chance,†one team source told Ralph Vacchiano of SNY. “We know that (drafting him) was a mistake.â€
The Giants and general manager Dave Gettleman elected to trade up into the first round to acquire Baker, who was the best corner on the board in the 2019 NFL draft.
Obviously, this ended up being a terrible decision and a waste of significant draft capital. This is just one primary reason the Giants should consider firing Gettleman at the end of the season, among a long list of questionable moves.
It seems as if Isaac Yiadom and Ryan Lewis will continue to get the majority of reps at CB2, but losing Baker at the beginning of the season will always haunt the defense and make fans wonder, what if?