New York Giants expected to sign CB Brandon Williams (Report)

The New York Giants are reportedly expected to bring in cornerback Brandon Williams, adding depth to a depleted secondary.

With the 2020 regular season right around the corner, the New York Giants have needed reinforcements at cornerback. DeAndre Baker seemingly won’t be available amid his pending armed robbery case and Sam Beal has opted-out in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. Free-agent Ross Cockrell was to return to East Rutherford until a potential deal between him and the Giants fell through earlier this month.

But now, barring another Cockrell-type situation, the search to add depth to this depleted position group seems to be concluding. According to NFL Network’s Mike Garafolo, the Giants are expected to sign Brandon Williams. The 27-year-old spent time with the Cardinals from 2016-19 after Arizona drafted him out of Texas A&M in 2016’s third round.

The #Giants are expected to sign CB Brandon Williams, sources say. He’s in for a visit now but has to go through protocol first. Former #AZCardinals third-round pick.

— Mike Garafolo (@MikeGarafolo) August 25, 2020

Unlike Cockrell, Williams won’t be penciled in as a starter. He’s only started three games out of 45 career appearances and didn’t take part in a regular-season matchup last year. After the Cardinals waived/injured him in August 2019 and then reverted him to injured reserve, he became a free agent this past March.

Through 16 games in 2018, Williams racked up 10 combined tackles and a pair of pass breakups.

There will still be a competition for that starting corner spot opposite free-agent acquisition James Bradberry, with Julian Love, Corey Ballentine, rookie Darnay Holmes, and now Williams all finding themselves in the mix. Whoever doesn’t win the job could thus compete for the starting slot corner role, which additionally doesn’t possess a concrete starter at the moment.