Giants' Deonte Banks up for challenge against Bengals' star-studded offense

Deonte Banks was slightly bemused.

He was being asked  — cross-examined, really —  by two reporters about the whys and hows he neutralized DK Metcalf.

To be clear, the cornerback was fully aware of his role in the Giants’ 29-20 win over Seattle at Lumen Field last Sunday. Banks limited the Seahawks star wide receiver to two catches for 24 yards and forced a fumble in the 35 plays the two were matched against each other.

By any measure, it was an impressive performance.

But in his mind, Banks was simply doing his job, playing to the standard the 23-year-old holds himself to, doing what he expects to do on Sundays and Mondays and Thursdays in stadiums across the NFL.

So there was no need for braggadocio. No point in self-aggrandizement. No willingness to thump his chest.

“I ain't played my best football yet,” said Banks, the Giants' 2023 first-round pick out of Maryland. “I got a lot more to go, lot more to come, lot more to give.”

Starting with Sunday night’s nationally-televised date with Ja’Marr Chase, Joe Burrow, Tee Higgins and the explosive Bengals at MetLife Stadium.

For both the Giants (2-3) and Banks, the triumvirate of Chase, Burrow, and Higgins present a challenge, even if the Bengals (1-4) have struggled in the early portion of the season.

Which has almost nothing to do with their offense.

Cincinnati is tied for fourth in the NFL in scoring average per game (28) and is ranked fifth in passing yards (263.0) and ninth in total yards (359.0) per game. Furthermore, the Bengals have scored 15 times (11 touchdowns and four field goals) in 16 possessions this season inside the opponents’ 20-yard line.

“We've got a big challenge ahead of us against a very good football team. I know their record isn't what they want it to be, but their four losses are one-score games,” Giants coach Brian Daboll said. “They're a very quality, good football team with a lot of good players.”

About that.

Burrow is completing 72.3% of his passes (125-for-173) for 1,370 yards and 12 touchdowns against just two interceptions. Following a protracted and very public contract squabble during training camp, Chase has been absurdly productive. The fourth-year wideout has caught 29 passes for 493 yards and five touchdowns, including two last week, one of which was a 70-yarder in a 41-38 overtime loss to the Ravens.

As for Higgins? Glad you asked. The 25-year-old had nine catches for 83 yards and two touchdowns against Baltimore. Overall, he is averaging 10.1 yards per catch (18 catches for 182 yards).

To summarize: The Bengals’ trio is as good as there is in the league.

“It's been impressive what he's been able to do up to this point this season,” Giants defensive coordinator Shane Bowen said of Burrow. “The accuracy, the decision making, can put the ball where he wants to put it, has the ability to extend plays with his legs. Then you're dealing with those guys on the outside, Chase and Higgins, and they're having monster years right now.”

Even though 31 other teams would be overjoyed to employ Higgins, it seems likely that Chase will be Banks’ assignment come Sunday night.

Yet, sitting at his locker, Banks certainly wasn’t awed by the prospect of spending the better part of the evening locking eyes with the LSU product.

“He can do a lot after the catch,” Banks said. “[So] make sure you try to stop him before he catches it and if he does catch it, get him on the ground.”

For someone who grew up emulating Patrick Peterson and Jalen Ramsey, and believes he will be a “dominant” cornerback, that doesn’t seem at all surprising.

And, outside of one forgettable moment against CeeDee Lamb in the 20-15 loss to the Cowboys on Sept. 26, Banks’ second season has been — like the Giants’ campaign to date —one of growth.

He has five passes defensed and 21 tackles, while given the challenge of covering Metcalf, Lamb, Washington’s Terry McLaurin, and Minnesota’s Justin Jefferson.

“We tell all these guys, every single snap, you need to expect the ball to come your way. It might not happen, but to have that focus, to have that sense of urgency, play in and play out, that they're going to come at me,” Bowen said. “[Banks] had that mentality last week. He was up for the challenge. It was good to see him go out there and make some plays for us.”