Giants CB Deonte Banks makes rookie mistake on social media
Commanders wide receiver Jahan Dotson scores a touchdown against Giants cornerback Deonte Banks during the second half of an NFL game Sunday in Landover, Md Credit: AP/Andrew Harnik
Rookies tend to make mistakes on the field and ideally won’t repeat them. Giants first-round pick Deonte Banks is looking at his recent viral slipup following Sunday’s win through a similar lens. The starting cornerback went on Instagram Live from the postgame locker room and taunted the Commanders as well as opposing wide receiver Terry McLaurin in an expletive-laced rant that spread rapidly through the online ether.
“It was kind of a little friendly trash talk that I took too far,” he said on Wednesday in a much more contrite tone than his social media appearance. “It was a lesson learned for me. As soon as it came out I was like ‘Oh, I didn’t mean to do all that. That’s not really what I meant to do.’”
In the video Banks, who grew up in Maryland, dissed his hometown Commanders for not selecting him with their 16th overall pick in April’s draft. “Now I'm 2-0 against you [expletive] boys,” he said with other R-rated references to the Giants’ NFC East rival. As for McLaurin, who had 43 receiving yards with Banks sharing coverage duties against him, the cornerback said: “I'm just trying to figure out, though, did 17 play today? That's all I wanna know. Did he play today?”
Banks said he was most surprised how quickly and widely the video spread after he posted it.
“That ain’t never happened to me to be blown up like that,” he said on Wednesday. “I didn’t mean for that to happen. I didn’t know it would be as big as it was.”
Giants coach Brian Daboll said he spoke with Banks about the post.
“We don’t want to do that,” he said sternly without getting into details about their conversation.
“It was just a bad decision on my part, unprofessional on my end,” Banks said. “It was a big road division win and I got a little carried away with the trash talk a little bit. It’s a lesson learned.”
Giant steps
Darius Slayton said the injury he sustained on Sunday was actually to his neck and not his arm as the team initially reported and that he came off the field holding his wrist after a big collision because it had gone numb from the contact. Slayton said he wasn’t sure if he would have enough range of motion in the neck to play Sunday but was hopeful about doing so. He did not practice on Wednesday … DL Dexter Lawrence (hamstring) and RT Evan Neal (ankle) did not practice either. RB Saquon Barkley was given a rest day … Rookie RB Eric Gray returned to practice from injured reserve. He has three weeks to be added to the active roster or revert to season-ending IR … CB Adore’ Jackson who missed the past two games with a concussion was a limited non-contact participant on Wednesday and could be cleared in time to play Sunday...… The Giants waived K Cade York and figure to promote veteran Randy Bullock to the active roster after three weeks as a practice squad call-up handling the duties of the position.
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.
