Nobody knew the name Corey Washington before a few weeks ago. Well, actually, someone might have heard the name because it's fairly common, but not many knew Corey Washington, the wide receiver for the New York Giants. And not many have heard of the college where he played football.
Washington attended Newberry College in South Carolina; a small liberal arts school founded in 1856 by the Lutheran Church. Its Division II football team was 9-3 during Washington's second year (he spent his first two college years at Georgia Military College where he amassed 51 catches for 781 yards and 12 touchdowns). Last year at Newberry, the 6'4" wide receiver led the team with 44 receptions for 839 yards and 13 touchdowns.
And he's picked up right where he left off. The rookie receiver was signed by the Arizona Cardinals as an undrafted free agent on May 13, but was waived just two weeks later. The Giants claimed him off of waivers the very next day. As for his brief stint in Arizona, the 22-year-old isn't really sure what happened.
"I really can't tell you [why it ended so quickly in Arizona]," Washington told reporters at Quest Diagnostics Training Center in East Rutherford, New Jersey. "You'd have to ask my agent. I had a great minicamp so I don't know."
The Cardinals might be regretting their decision to waive Washington, as the rookie has nine receptions for 152 yards and four touchdowns in four preseason games thus far. He has scored in every contest, including three game-winning fourth quarter touchdowns against Buffalo, Pittsburgh and Indianapolis. Nobody - not even Washington - saw this coming. When asked about his expectations for contributing to the New York Giants upon his arrival, he replied:
"...come out here, do special teams, and then be that big wide receiver on the depth chart. My main focus was making the 53-man roster and help Victor Cruz and those other guys have a great receiving corps."
Well, the young man has exceeded expectations at this point, to say the least. Washington's performance is comparable to Victor Cruz's rookie year in 2010 when the Giants' star led the NFL preseason in receiving yards (297) and touchdowns (4). Now, Cruz, one of the NFL's best, has recorded 241 receptions for 3,626 yards and 23 touchdowns in three seasons with the Giants. He was awarded a five-year, $46 million contract last offseason and is the team's No. 1 receiver. Washington's preseason is eliciting memories of Cruz's beginnings in 2010. Cruz, who was also once an undrafted free agent, even gave some advice to the young Newberry graduate.
"He's just telling me to take it day by day," said Washington. "And not to worry about what's going on in the outside world; just focus on me. Every day, come out and study the playbook."
Aside from getting advice from others in the organization, Washington has received praise from quarterback Eli Manning and offensive coordinator Ben McAdoo. The two acknowledged that the rookie still has some work to do, but they're enjoying Washington's performances over the past month just as much as he is.
"He's made plays, so that's obviously what you like to see in a receiver, you know, can they win those one-on-one matchups?" said Manning. "And he was able to do that on the fade last week and the go route the week before; making a play, jumping over the defender, and making a catch. He's still got to improve on the route running, techniques, and those things, but just from his size matchup and playmaking ability, he's done a good job making plays in games and in practice."
McAdoo sounded ecstatic when reporters asked him about Washington.
"Corey's a big man that can run and go get the football," said the first-year offensive coordinator. "That's a good place to start. He's a young guy that has a lot to learn, but he's really done some special things over the last week and it'll be exciting to see him grow."
But many will argue about who Washington has been facing this preseason. He's mainly been going up against other players who are competing for a roster spot, typically third- and fourth-stringers, so his ability to compete with better talents at the cornerback and safety positions remains a question mark at this point. But it's hard to doubt his playmaking ability because he has proven that his size, strength and ball skills can translate to the highest competition, regardless of the defenders' rank.
"It's the NFL," Washington told reporters. "We're professionals, so we go out there and handle business like we're supposed to."
The Giants will face the Patriots in their final preseason game on Thursday at 7:30 p.m at MetLife Stadium. Now that roster cuts have been made earlier this week to reduce each team's size to 75 players, the competition will be greater during the final week of the NFL preseason. Although it seems as if a roster spot is almost guaranteed for Washington, he will have the opportunity to further prove his worth before the final cuts are made and the Giants begin preparing for their matchup against the Detroit Lions on September 8.
And the final weeks of the preseason don't seem to intimidate Washington whatsoever.
"No, I'm not curious," he replied when asked if he's wondering what it's like to face greater competition. "I'm just glad I'm playing my game. I'm not worried about players or other 1's and 2's. They play football just like me. I just gotta go out there and continue to make plays and do what I do."
And that's exactly what an NFL coaching staff wants to hear out of a rookie trying to make the team.
