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The New York Giants continue their trend of making smart, under the radar signings in free agency, this time plucking a talented defensive back from the XFL ranks.
According to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport, the G-Men have agreed to a two-year deal with former New York Guardians’ safety Dravon Askew-Henry. The defensive back also happens to be the cousin of former NFL great and ex-perennial All-Pro cornerback Darrelle Revis.
Askew-Henry Was a Productive College Player
Askew-Henry was a highly sought after four-star high school recruit coming out of Aliquippa High School in Pennsylvania. With offers from powerhouses such as Alabama and Florida State, Askew-Henry opted to takes his talents to West Virginia.
Askew-Henry quickly asserted himself as a team leader and a dominant force on the backend of the Mountaineers’ defense. The defensive back started all 51 games of his WVU career, a school record. In 2018, his senior season, he earned All-Big 12 Honorable Mention honors. He finished his collegiate career with 215 total tackles, six interceptions, and 10 pass breakups.
Askew-Henry Has NFL Roots
Bloodline aside, Askew-Henry has had a previous NFL stint of his own. The safety went undrafted in the 2019 NFL Draft, eventually landing with the Pittsburgh Steelers as an undrafted free agent.
He showed well during his time with Pittsburgh, demonstrating the ability to operate at numerous defensive back positions.
“I’m versatile. I am gonna do whatever I got to do to make the team win,” Askew-Henry told Chris Adamski of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. “You got to cover. You’ve got to [be] willing to go out there on an island, come in the box to tackle, and I feel like I can do all of that.”
Ultimately, Askew-Henry’s stint with the Steelers was short-lived. However, he landed on his feet in the XFL. He was selected with the seventh pick in the fourth round by the New York Guardians.
In a season that was cut short due to the COVID-19 outbreak, Askew-Henry’s stats in the XFL were a bit limited, making 11 combined tackles in five games for the Guardian before the league canceled the rest of the season.
With the Giants, Askew-Henry will join the likes of Jabrill Peppers, Julian Love, Sean Chandler, and Nate Ebner. Peppers and Love appear to have the two starting safety spots locked down, meaning Askew-Henry will need to show well on special teams to earn a place on the 53-man roster. Thankfully for Askew-Henry’s sake, he’s time and time again proven able to be versatile and shape himself to whatever role teams have asked him to serve in.
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