Greg Newsome (6) celebrates after a pass breakup. | Corey Perrine/Florida Times-Union / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
The New York Giants may not have been splashy in the opening of the 2026 free agency period. The Giants stayed true to the reports that John Harbaugh believes there’s more talent on the roster than the 4-13 record would indicate and that they were planning tinkering, rather than overhauling the roster completely.
But that doesn’t mean that they weren’t active, either.
The Giants were thin at a number of positions prior to free agency, including cornerback. The Giants turned to former Cleveland Browns and Jacksonville Jaguars cornerback Greg Newsome II to help shore up their secondary after Cor’Dale Flott left for Tennessee.
Newsome made it clear, the Giants were already high on his list of destinations and he wanted to be a New York Football Giant. He wants to play with Jaxson Dart and behind the Giants’ defensive front.
“I just feel like this is an up-and-coming team,” Newsome said. “Just watching them last year, starting with the quarterback position, having a young quarterback, he’s got energy. He was growing tremendously last year, so that was something that I wanted to be a part of. Then obviously the D-line. Like, we’ve got a lot of guys on that front that can rush the passer, can do a lot of great things. The secondary, we’re all pretty young, and got a lot of potential.”
And of course, Newsome was familiar with new Giants’ head coach John Harbaugh. He played against Harbaugh’s Ravens teams for three years with the Cleveland Browns, and also made it clear that he’s looking for the opportunity to play for his old foe.
“That [the Giants’ young talent] was something that really intrigued me,” he added. “Then obviously I had a lot of battles with Coach Harbaugh in the AFC North, so when I (saw) him having this opportunity to come here, this was one of my first places I wanted to be.
“We were talking about it yesterday,” Newsome said. “It was a lot of close battles. It was always a hard-nosed game. That’s the type of person he [Harbaugh] is, that’s the type of team that we’re going to be a part of this year. That was something I was definitely super excited about.”
He’s not a stranger
Newsome also mentioned that he has prior relationships with quite a few of the Giants new — and existing — players, including some of his new teammates in the secondary.
“I know a lot of the guys from the Ravens, (fullback Patrick) Ricard and (tight end) Isaiah Likely, a lot of those guys,” he said. “Tyler Nubin (safety, Giants 2024 second-round pick), he’s another Illinois guy, so I grew up with him. Me, (cornerback) Paulson (Adebo), (safety) Jevon (Holland), we all came in together. I know them as well. I’ve kind of got a good mix of guys that I know already.”
‘We’re going to be aggressive’
One of the big questions Giants fans have for the new team is what the defense will look like. Defensive coordinator Dennard Wilson called a similar defense at Tennessee to what Shane Bowen employed when he held that job. However, Wilson often expressed a desire to be more aggressive with the Titans’ defense. It’s also notable that the Giants wanted Wilson to replace Wink Martindale in 2024, and the Giants hired secondary coaches from the Denver Broncos and Kansas City Chiefs.
So it seems aggressive defense is back on the menu in New York. Newsome certainly seems to back up that hypothesis with what he expects from the Giants’ defense.
“I like it,” Newsome said. “Talked to him [DC Dennard Wilson] a little bit, and that’s how he’s going to play. We’re going to be aggressive, and that’s how I like playing. We talked a little about it, not too much, (I) just got in the door, but I’m super excited to be a part of his defense.”
“With my game, my strong suit I think is playing press man coverage,” he added. “That was something that we did in Cleveland all the time was playing man-to-man, getting in people’s face and challenging guys. So that’s where I feel like my strong suit is. Improvement, I feel like all of my game can improve. If you’re not trying to improve on everything, then you’re not trying to be a great player. I think just improving on all – press, everything, I feel like there’s always something that I can get better at.”
‘Excited to start fresh’
But beyond scheme fit, it all comes back to the team dynamic for Newsome.
Harbaugh has a reputation as a culture builder, first and foremost. That might have been what attracted Newsome to the Giants over other free agent cornerbacks. Rather than talk about goals on the field, Newsome’s first goal is to help build the Giants’ locker room.
“I’m the ultimate team guy,” he said. “Obviously, everyone wants to be a starter, and that’s my expectation is to try to work as hard as I can to become the starter. But it’s early right now, it’s March. We’ve got to, my goal right now is to get all the guys together, build this team, build this locker room. And then when training camp and all that stuff happens, that’s when depth chart things will be made. But right now, it’s just to integrate myself with this team now and just trying to continue to build this culture.
“This was one of the most important teams for me to go to. I just felt like from leaving Cleveland to going to Jacksonville, I didn’t finish the way that I wanted to, so I assumed that this could be a possibility to sign a one- year. I’m excited to be here. I feel like this is an opportunity for me to be here long-term. There (were) other places that could have had a little bit (of a) longer term deal, but I wanted to be here, and I wanted to showcase myself in front of the New York fan base and my coaches and players. I’m excited to start fresh here now and hopefully we get something done where I can retire a Giant, because that’s what I want to do.”
