If Cor’Dale Flott leaves in free agency next week, the New York Giants will be in the market for a new starting cornerback. ESPN’s Aaron Schatz has an interesting, inexpensive idea for where the Giants might find one.
A 2022 third-round pick, Flott had a breakout season in 2025. He made 14 starts after taking a starting job away from former first-round pick Deonte Banks, had 11 pass breakups, an interception, and posted a career-best 73.3 passer rating against, per Pro Football Reference.
Head coach John Harbaugh has said the Giants want Flott, along with other key free agents Jermaine Eluemunor and Wan’Dale Robinson, back. The question is how much the Giants are willing to pay for a rail-thin 6-foot-2, 175-pound cornerback who offers nothing in run support and is not a physical, press-man coverage player.
The Athletic projects a three-year, $22.5 million contract for Flott. Pro Football Focus is less optimistic about Flott’s market, putting his projection at two years, $15 million.
Whatever Flott’s value ends up being, if the Giants choose not to pay it cornerback jumps up their priority list. They simply can’t, and won’t, go into the 2026 season looking at Banks or 2025 seventh-round pick Korie Black as potential starters.
Enter Stokes.
A first-round pick (No. 29 overall) by the Green Bay Packers in 2021, the 27-year-old Stokes has had an up-and-down career.
Stokes was good as a rookie, starting 14 games, getting 14 passes defensed, an interception, and posting a 71.3 passer rating against. The next three seasons weren’t good, as passer rating against numbers of 123.5 in 2022, 145.3 in just three games in 2023, and 100.0 in 2024.
Stokes signed with the Raiders in 2025 and had a bounce-back year. He started 16 games, posted a 77.3 passer rating against, and had five passes defensed.
Justis Mosqueda, producer of SB Nation’s Acme Packing Company, watched Stokes for four seasons with the Packers. Here is what Mosqueda said about Stokes’ time in Green Bay:
“He was drafted to play in the (Joe) Barry match quarters system (probably what you guys will be running) and did really well his rookie year, then they became a spot drop zone team after Year 1 of Barry. He had a lot of injuries (was in a wheelchair at one point) and wasn’t ever terrible, but people made it a big thing that he didn’t make plays on the ball after Year 1. Happy that he’s bounced back. Always been a good guy. They like the person in GB.”
In recommending that the Giants sign Stokes, ESPN’s Schatz acknowledged his year-to-year inconsistencies.
Cornerbacks are a tough choice in free agency because they are so inconsistent from season to season. Stokes was one of the worst cornerbacks in the league in 2024, but he transformed into one of the league’s best in 2025 with 53 total tackles and five passes defensed.
It’s safe to say that we don’t know what version of Stokes we’ll see in 2026. But this is a clear position of need for the Giants, who ranked 17th in yards allowed per completion last season (10.9). They can take a chance that Stokes is closer to his 2025 play.
Pro Football Focus projects Stokes’ market value at two years, $14 million. Spotrac projects three years, $22.1 million, roughly the same average annual value with a year added to the contract.
If the Giants can’t keep Flott, is the 6-foot, 194-pound Stokes a player you would take a chance on, Giants fans?
