On paper, Greg Newsome II’s debut as a starting cornerback for the New York Giants looked pretty solid. Newsome saw a lot of wide receiver George Pickens during Sunday night’s win over the Dallas Cowboys, and per Pro Football Focus, he allowed just one catch on three targets for 8 yards.
That doesn’t tell the whole story, though. The No. 26 overall pick of the Cleveland Browns in 2021 has struggled throughout his pro career on the boundary, and a couple of plays that won’t show up in the box score show what Browns fans know well from experience.
The Giants are playing with fire if they’re going to deploy Newsome full time on the outside.
Newsome was in coverage on a Dak Prescott deep ball to Pickens that was dropped late in the second quarter. The highlight quickly went viral as Newsome rather hilariously celebrated a play that he didn’t really make. He wasn’t credited with a pass breakup in the game.
He was also flagged for a 39-yard defensive pass interference penalty on a coverage rep against Pickens.
PFF delivered the sobering reality on Newsome’s 52 defensive snaps on Sunday — slapping a 38.2 overall defensive grade on his performance, including a grade of 40.4 in coverage.
The Cleveland Browns’ decision to trade Greg Newsome II continues to age well
Newsome’s production has been declining for the past two seasons, to the point where he didn’t earn himself a new contract with the Jacksonville Jaguars after last year’s midseason trade that sent Tyson Campbell to Cleveland.
The payoff for the Browns in that deal was twofold. They reset the clock on their No. 2 cornerback position in a sense, as Campbell was already signed through 2029 and is owed an average of $15.5 million over the next three seasons, per Spotrac.
Campbell is also the more prototypical boundary cornerback that better fits Cleveland’s defensive system. Newsome’s best years were earlier in his career when he was deployed as the Browns’ main nickel.
Newsome has struggled as a straight boundary cornerback in recent years, including with Jacksonville in 2025. Per PFF, he allowed touchdowns in coverage in each of his first four games as a Jaguar and wound up allowing a passer rating of 115.8 when targeted.
The Browns’ duo of Denzel Ward and Campbell ranks as one of the top duos in football. Giants fans may think they found a steal in 2026 free agency, but the reckoning could be coming soon if Newsome continues as a starter on the outside working against top wideouts like Pickens.
Browns (and Jaguars) fans know how this movie ends.
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