Cor'Dale Flott Taking Advantage of Giants Opportunities

Cor’Dale Flott has waited almost four seasons for his opportunity to prove he’s a capable starting NFL cornerback. And now it’s finally here.

Flott, the New York Giants' third-round pick in 2022 out of LSU, battled against 2023 first-round draft pick Deonte Banks for most of the spring and throughout the summer.

Despite playing more consistently, the coaching staff stuck with a rotation of sorts: Flott would play on first and second downs, and Banks would come in on third downs, where he was asked to play man coverage.

Alas for the Giants, their best-laid plan to give both players a chance went against the coaching staff’s stated commitment to doing what’s best for the team. 

Banks, per PFF, is ranked 76th out of 99 cornerbacks with at least 80 coverage snaps, the former Maryland Terp failing to rank in the top 20 of the sample group in pass breakups, forced incompletions, and coverage rating.

Flott, meanwhile, in 179 coverage snaps, is tied for fourth in pass breakups (4), tied for ninth with four forced incompletions, and has a coverage rating of 68.4, which is 18th among the 99-man sample.

Flott, who handled the Giants’ CB2 duties in their upset win against the Eagles, posted a career-best 16.7 in the team’s upset win over the Philadelphia Eagles. 

His night also included a huge 68-yard interception runback that set up the final score in the fourth quarter of a 34-17 victory on Thursday night at MetLife Stadium.

"It is the opportunity I was wanting for and I made the most of it," the fourth-year man, Flott, said after the game.

"Coming to the game, I was confident, and I appreciated them for giving me the opportunity, and in my head, I was just like, I got to make the most of it to stay out here. [I wanted to] prove to my defense, prove to my whole team and the coaching staff that I could do it."