It is easy to suggest there is not much out there for the Giants and that they are not gearing up for anything other than more weekend misery.
With seven games remaining, winding down is not a legitimate option.
Deonte Banks has endured through a rookie year filled with lessons, learning and losing, and he insists he is not looking for the exit sign to lead him out of his first NFL journey.
The season already seems excruciatingly long, with the Giants at 2-8 and riding a three-game losing streak into Sunday’s game with the Commanders at FedEx Field.
It has not been too long for Banks.
“It’s kind of like clockwork, I just keep rolling,” Banks told The Post after Wednesday’s practice. “I love football so much so it’s just another opportunity for me, you feel me? To do my favorite thing.”
Banks pushes ahead, snap-to-snap, game-to-game and week-to-week, always moving forward, impossibly upbeat despite the mounting losses.
There is nearly half a season remaining — heck, the Giants have not even hit their bye week yet — and that can feel like drudgery to veterans who know what it is like to play games in November, December and January filled with playoff implications.
That feeling has not ever surfaced around this year’s Giants.
Seven more games.
“Exciting,’’ Banks said. “Every time I go out there on a football field it’s exciting for me. And having fun. For me it’s just I get another chance to go out and play. It’s not like, ‘I got to go out there and play this game.’ It’s like, ‘I get another chance!’ ’’
Banks was forced out of Sunday’s 49-17 loss to the Cowboys with a sprained ankle.
He was a limited participant in practice and said he should be fine to play on Sunday.
Last month’s first encounter with Washington was one of the very few bright moments in this dark season.
Banks made his first and only NFL interception with an over-the-shoulder grab of a Sam Howell overthrow.
Banks played 63 of the 69 snaps on defense in that game, a rare 14-7 Giants victory, and was able to help keep dangerous Terry McLaurin somewhat in check, limiting the Commanders’ top target to six catches for 90 yards.
Banks is not a favorite with Pro Football Focus, which grades him out as the 108th cornerback in the league this season. He has played 523 snaps on defense — 81 percent.
“Um, I’m having an OK year,” Banks said. “I feel like I could lock in a little bit more, you feel me? Look at some of the plays I don’t make. Other than that I feel like I’m having a good year.”
The Giants made Banks the 24th overall pick, out of Maryland, and at 22 years old made him an immediate starter.
He has not missed a thing and seen quite a bit of instability around him.
Tre Hawkins, a sixth-round pick from Old Dominion, surprisingly won a starting job, giving the Giants two rookie corners.
That did not last long, as Hawkins played extensively in the first three games before the decision was made to send him to the bench.
He started in Week 7 against the Commanders only because Adoree’ Jackson was out with a neck injury.
This is the time, with Thanksgiving nearing, when rookies often falter, unaccustomed to playing so many games after their first NFL spring and summer.
“It’s a long season for them, yeah,” coach Brian Daboll said. “College football’s getting close to kind of ending, the championship games coming on. So, this is usually the time you’ve got to really stay on these guys in terms of their preparation and the consistency and fighting through some things because it’s a long season for them. Everybody goes through it. Whether you’re a staff member and you haven’t been involved in pro football, or a player, there’s definitely long days, it’s a long season so you continually work with those guys.”
Daboll said he has not seen any slowing down from Banks.
“The length of the season is different for those guys, but he’s been a pro since he’s been here,” Daboll said. “He’s got the right mindset. Good young man, works hard and I’m glad he’s on our team.”
Banks, a key component in the defense moving forward, said thoughts about hitting the rookie wall “mean nothing to me” and he added it is “cool” that he has seven games left to play before he closes out Year 1 with the Giants.
“I haven’t hit a rookie wall,” he said. “I’m still fully confident in my ability. I feel good. I feel great.”
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