This Week 4 Opponent Would Add Depth to the Giants Defensive Backfield

Another cornerback for the Giants? If they could land this guy from Seattle, their Week 4 opponents, you betcha.

As we count down to training camp, the Giants Country editorial team went through the rosters of each of the Giants' 2023 regular-season opponents and selected a player that, if the Giants could acquire for the upcoming season, they absolutely should.

Who did we pick from each team? Stay tuned--and yes, for the NFC East teams, we picked two players since the Giants play them twice.

Jasen Vinlove-USA TODAY Sports

Tariq Woolen, Cornerback

Height: 6-foot-4 | Weight: 205 lbs.
College: UTSA | Exp: 2 years
Career Stats: 17 GS, 63 Tkls, 6 Ints, TD, 1 FF, 3 FR

The New York Giants defense under Wink Martindale has always thrived when it has cornerbacks that can lock up receivers man-to-man. So adding a cornerback with elite-level speed and abnormal height would be a plus for this team. And when you add ball-hawking ability, that gets one excited over the prospects of that talent inserted into this defense.

Last year while the NFL world was gushing over Jets cornerback Sauce Gardner's rookie season, he was outplayed by Seattle's Tariq Woolen, who did it in the great Northwest in relative anonymity. While the novice football fan may not know who he is, you can believe every coach and front office member knows him.

Woolen immediately jumped on the scene with his play at UTSA, where he was a wide receiver convert. He spent the first three seasons as a receiver, and in his final two seasons, he played cornerback for the Road Runners as they posted some of the best records in school history.

He further turned heads when running a 4.26-second forty-yard dash at the 2022 NFL Combine. No matter how many heads he turned, he could not get teams, including the Giants, who instead chose CorDale Flott in the third round to take a chance on his elite-level size and athleticism--until Seattle finally pulled him off the board in the fifth round.

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Where Would He Fit In?

Woolen would be a starter on this Giants team. Even with the Giants having drafted Deonte Banks in the first round, Woolen's proven track record as a man-to-man specialist in the NFL would make him a plug-and-play guy.

He would allow Martindale to move Banks inside to cover those special slot receivers. Woolen's size would also allow Adoree' Jackson to not guard receivers he gives up several inches against. Woolen improves the depth and diversity of the defensive backfield.

When you look at the Giants' schedule, it is filled with dynamic receivers. Woolen could match up with big receivers like AJ Brown, Brandon Aiyuk, DK Metcalf, and Davonte Adams. He would also allow the Giants to match up against opponents with multiple talented receivers like Philadelphia, Miami, Seattle, San Francisco, Buffalo, and New Orleans.

The Giants can unleash all three of their coverage corners with three legitimate coverage guys on the team. Also, because of his athleticism and length, Woolen can be placed on whichever receiver poses the biggest threat outside while allowing the other two elite defensive backs to shut down interior receivers or those on the boundary side of the field.

Many may think that, if the Giants did indeed have their pick of any player on the Seahawks, Metcalf would be a great option because the perception is that the Giants still need a true X receiver. However, the construction of this team's offensive weapons seems to fit the team's philosophy, so Metcalf may not be what the team believes they need.

Woolen, on the other hand, would fit in with the Giants defense like a glove. 

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