Former Kentucky CB Dru Phillips shining as rookie for New York Giants

The New York Giants have not gotten off to a great start in 2024. The franchise is 0-2 to start the season with losses to the Vikings and Commanders. The Giants rank among the NFL’s bottom 10 in both offense and defense. There hasn’t been much excitement around this team early into the schedule, but there’s been plenty of it surrounding a rookie in the secondary with ties to the Bluegrass.

Andru “Dru” Phillips, who played at Kentucky from 2020-23 before the Giants scooped him up in the third round of the most recent NFL Draft, has been making waves for New York’s defense. Phillips established himself as a legitimate player for the Giants in training camp and the preseason, and has parlayed that into 82 defensive snaps through two games.

After seeing minimal snaps in the season-opener, Phillips played over 90 percent of the snaps in Week 2 against the Commanders.

Dru Phillips is making some PLAYS in Week 2pic.twitter.com/46O0lezstb https://t.co/NlT9g0NNDz

— All-22 (@All22_PFF) September 15, 2024

The former Wildcat is putting up big numbers, too. Phillips has 16 tackles this season already, 12 of them coming in the Week 2 loss against the Commanders. He’s also registered three tackles for loss, one sack, one forced fumble, and one quarterback hit along the way.

“Being out there as a rookie, guys rely on me to know what I’m doing and to go out there and make plays,” Phillips recently told The Post’s Jared Schwartz. “I try to go out there and do my stuff, because all camp, if I make a mistake, I know they’re all staring at me. So I’m just trying not to mess up and go do what I got to do.”

Phillips’ PFF grade of 77.5 ranks eighth among all NFL cornerbacks. His Defensive Rookie of the Year odds have boomed to 15th-best. The Giants’ secondary has not been stellar through two games, but Phillips has been a beacon of hope. He’ll be back in action this afternoon when New York takes on the Cleveland Browns at 1:00 p.m. EST on FOX.

During his college career, Phillips played in 38 career games at Kentucky, including 16 starts. He started 12 games during his junior season in 2023, finishing with 47 tackles and five pass breakups. Now, he’s making a significant impact at the next level.