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Fact or Fiction: All-Rookie picks, QB-center duos

Jul 17, 2023 at 05:58 AM

by Dan Salomone, Lance Medow & Matt Citak

The Giants.com crew is presented with four statements and must decide whether they are Fact or Fiction.

The Giants will have multiple players make the 2023 PFWA All-Rookie Team.

Dan Salomone: Fact – For reference, the Professional Football Writers of America choose just two cornerbacks, one center, and two wide receivers on this least each season. So, you're talking about a pretty selective list, unlike a Pro Bowl where you have alternates and things of that nature. Even so, out of the Giants' top three picks – 24th overall pick Deonte Banks, All-American John Michael Schmitz, and Biletnikoff Award winner Jalin Hyatt – having more than one make All-Rookie is a possibility for the Giants.

Lance Medow: Fiction – The last time the Giants had multiple players on the PFWA All-Rookie Team was 2018, when Saquon Barkley and Will Hernandez both earned nods. In 2022, Kayvon Thibodeaux was the lone representative. While this year's group offers a few candidates based on projected playing time, I'll still lean toward just one out of Deonte Banks, John Michael Schmitz and Jalin Hyatt having a good chance to make the team. Hyatt is part of a deep receiving corps, and Banks and Schmitz play positions where there were several options in the early portion of this year's draft. You can't overlook those factors.

Matt Citak: Fiction – The Giants will have at least one player make, but multiple guys might be tough. John Michael Schmitz was the second center taken in this year's draft, which saw only four centers get selected in the first three rounds. Schmitz was widely considered the top player at his position heading into the draft, so he should have a solid chance at earning the spot on the All-Rookie Team. Deonte Banks might turn out to be the most impactful Giants rookie this year, but he easily has the toughest competition as he will go up against Devon Witherspoon, Emmanuel Forbes, Christian Gonzalez and Joey Porter Jr., just to name a few. The same goes for Jalin Hyatt, who saw nine wide receivers get their name called before him.

Outside of quarterback, cornerback is the toughest position for rookies to play.

Dan Salomone: Fact – On top of the physical and mental demands, rookie cornerbacks also have to deal with adjusting to stricter contact rules in the NFL. The deck is stacked against them from the start.

Lance Medow: Fact – Cornerback is right up there with quarterback. Regardless of what you're asked to do within the scheme, corners are responsible for either one player or an area of the field. It means you must constantly read the situation, adjust to what can be a lot of traffic and keep pace with very skilled offensive playmakers. Playing corner as a rookie can be a rude awakening as, more often than not, you're going to be put on an island with no help and have to make split-second decisions.

Matt Citak: Fiction – Not too long ago, I likely would have answered this one differently. But in recent years, we have seen rookie cornerbacks step into the lineup and immediately play well. Last year, Sauce Gardner earned All-Pro honors as a rookie while Tariq Woolen was also selected to the Pro Bowl. Patrick Surtain II also saw plenty of success as a rookie in 2021 and followed that up by earning First-Team All-Pro honors this past season. They don't always pan out immediately, but we've certainly seen a bit of a change with rookie cornerbacks in recent seasons. Instead of cornerback, let's go with tight end as the toughest position for rookies to play. We rarely see a rookie tight end step in and have a significant impact in Year 1. Instead, it typically takes a couple of seasons before young tight ends really begin to take off.

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