As Deonte Banks sits at his locker, he bears no resemblance to who he actually is, which is a 22-year-old rookie cornerback just days away from playing in his first NFL game as a starter for the Giants against the Cowboys.
Banks, drafted with the 24th overall pick in the first round this past spring, typically wears the look of a relaxed veteran, a smile almost always painted to his face. He also sounds the part of a veteran, speaking confidently, like someone who fears nothing.
Banks has insisted he doesn’t fear the moment he’s about to face Sunday night at MetLife Stadium, nor the Cowboys receivers he’ll have to cover: CeeDee Lamb, Brandin Cooks, Michael Gallup and Jalen Brooks.
“I was built for this,’’ Banks told The Post this week. “I worked my ass off to get here and now I’m here. Now it’s time to stay here.’’
What makes Banks, who played his college ball at Maryland, believe he’s built for this?
“It’s a mindset thing,’’ he said. “Everything you can think of as a DB, I’ve got it. I know how hard I worked to get here and I don’t duck from anything. I come from a tough city. Baltimore is a tough city. I feel like I’ve seen a lot so I can get through anything. It’s cool. I’m ready for it.’’
Banks saw enough tragedy in his life around Baltimore to make playing football — even in the NFL — seem almost trivial. According to a story in the Baltimore Sun, Banks’ youth team quarterback, Cincere Johnson, was shot and killed in 2021, shortly after one of his coaches from that team, Bernard Richardson, was stabbed to death.
Football is fun for Banks, not stressful. Stress comes off the field. Fun comes on the field, and that’s how he approaches his job.
“Everyone’s got their own little superpower,’’ Banks said. “Me? I just like being physical and I like having fun playing the game. I don’t really get stressed out there. I’m trying to have fun, but as I’m having fun, I’m doing my job.’’
If you listen to Giants defensive coordinator Wink Martindale and Banks’ teammates on defense, it seems he has been picking up his new job rather quickly.
“He’s ahead of schedule,’’ Martindale said this week. “I like his attitude. He loves to compete, he loves this defense, he loves the system, and you can tell the way his teammates have grown close to him already that he’s an all-around good guy that’s going to have a lot of success in this league.’’
Safety Jason Pinnock has noticed.
“Things are clicking with him much faster now,’’ Pinnock said. “I’m seeing his improvement. It’s impressive. He’s everything as advertised.’’
When it was suggested that Banks doesn’t come across as cocky, but “quietly confident,’’ Pinnock smiled and said, “That’s a perfect way to put it, because he’s not cocky and he’s not arrogant. He’s quietly confident.’’
Banks called his early days with the Giants, rookie minicamp and then organized team activities, “a really smooth transition,’’ adding, “When it really soaked in for me was when we had the two- or three-week break before training camp. That’s when I really sat down and was like, ‘I’m really here.’
“I kind of just jelled in with the team. The first two days of camp kind of overwhelmed me a little bit. It was just a faster vibe than I hadn’t really had before. So, I had to regroup myself and find my groove. Now, I’m just trying to keep it consistent.’’
Cornerback Adoree’ Jackson likes what he has seen and learned about the rookie who’ll start opposite him, citing his “willingness to learn and being humble.’’
Jackson is not at all put off that Banks has such confidence as a first-year player.
“Being a corner, you have to have that swagger and confidence about you,’’ Jackson said. “The great ones that played — Deion Sanders and Darrelle Revis and Charles Woodson — had that. [Banks] has a great demeanor. He’s humble, he respects the game and is willing to learn and he approaches the game and his peers the right way.
“And, the dude is a freak athlete that you don’t get to see a lot, and I’m glad we have him here on our team.’’
Safety Xavier McKinney said he has seen Banks “develop a lot.’’
“Since he came in, he always had a sense of urgency,’’ McKinney said. “He was always ready and willing to learn. He’s done a great job of being poised, being able to learn different things and catching on really fast. I know when he’s out there I don’t have to worry much about him.
“He’s very poised and super confident. You can tell by his play. He never gets any panic mode. It’s rare to see that from a rookie, but I know where he’s from, and usually people from where he’s from, they don’t have any timidness.’’