Undrafted safety Yusuf Corker making most of opportunity with Giants

Yusuf Corker called it.

“Before the scrimmage [on Friday night], we all had a defensive group meeting and I told everybody I was going to get a turnover that game,” the rookie safety said Sunday. “It was a pretty bold statement, but I believed in myself.”

So when he did come down with an interception late in the workout — hauling in a pass in the end zone that had been tipped by teammate Darren Evans and returning it about 60 yards across midfield — no one should have been shocked.

What has been a bit of a surprise, though, has been how well the undrafted player from Kentucky has been performing, flying around in the secondary and coming up to make plays at the line of scrimmage in practices. He’s even been given the “green dot” helmet for the second- and third-team defenses, making him the play-caller and field general.

Those are things the Giants thought they would get from Dane Belton, but when the fourth-round pick suffered a fractured collarbone a week ago, Corker moved up the depth chart. “It doesn’t matter where you ended up or what round you were drafted in,” he said. “I’m ready to prove my worth. Whenever you get your reps, you have to make the most of them, be noticed and make plays.”

It doesn’t hurt to predict those, either.

“Good things always come when you run to the ball, so that’s how I got it,” he said of his interception. “My goal for preseason is to show the team that I’m a good tackler, a smart player, and hopefully get some more turnovers during the preseason.”

Notes & quotes: The Giants added line depth by agreeing to terms with OL Eric Smith. He was a Giant in 2019 and 2020 .  .  . Among those who did not practice Sunday were LB Carter Coughlin, WR David Sills, TE Ricky Seals-Jones and CB Rodarius Williams.

By Tom Rock

tom.rock@newsday.com@TomRock_Newsday

Tom Rock began covering sports for Newsday in 1996 and became its NFL columnist in 2022. He previously was Newsday's Giants beat writer beginning in 2008.