Johnathan Hankins most underrated player on New York Giants defense

Odell Beckham Jr. is the most popular player on the New York Giants. I’ve talked extensively about Beckham, but he wasn’t the only young Giants player to find success in 2014.

Johnathan Hankins enjoyed an extremely quiet breakout season in 2014, and he is undoubtedly the most underrated player on the New York Giants defense.

Nicknamed “Big Hank” due to his enormous (6-2, 320) stature, Hankins is developing into a star on the Giants defensive line, and he is the glue that will hold the Giants defensive line together for years to come.

Coming out of Ohio State, Hankins was compared to Vince Wilforkand it’s easy to see why.

Drafted in the second round of the 2013 draft, Hankins was brought to New York to backup veterans Cullen Jenkins, Mike Patterson and Linval Joseph. After a relatively quiet rookie year (11 games, 9 total tackles, no sacks) and the departure of Linval Joseph, Hankins is proving his worth to the Giants.

Hankins started all 16 games this year and recorded 51 tackles, three passes defended, one forced fumble, 21 quarterbacks hurries and seven sacks. The seven sacks are the most by a Giants defensive tackle since 2000. One of those sacks included what would essentially be a game-winning sack against the Atlanta Falcons.

Oct 5, 2014; East Rutherford, NJ, USA; New York Giants defensive tackle Johnathan Hankins (95) sacks Atlanta Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan (2) late in during the second half at MetLife Stadium. New York Giants defeat the Atlanta Falcons 30-20. Mandatory Credit: Jim O

The only defensive tackles that finished with more sacks than Hankins were Sen’Derrick Marks and Pro Bowlers Marcell Dareus, Gerald McCoy, Aaron Donald and Ndamukong Suh. Hankins also received a +8.8 pass rush grade, according to Pro Football Focus.

Hankins’ run-stopping ability was never a question, but the way he developed into an interior pass rusher in one year’s time was truly remarkable.

Head coach Tom Coughlin commented on Hankins’ pass-rushing ability.

“Well he’s had some great outstanding games as of late,” Coughlin said, following Hankins’ 2.5 sack performance against the Redskins. “When we drafted him we thought we knew what we had, but he’s certainly beyond just a run stopper.”

The big man in the middle has attributed his success as a pass rusher to better film study.

“I watch [opposing offensive linemen], and study what they do good, what they do bad, and I kind of have an idea of what they’re doing,” Hankins said, via NJ.com. “Sometimes it’s hard because you’re watching them go against someone else, maybe they’re playing them a little differently. So what I do, I watch them and see how they’re doing. Then the day of the game, when we’re playing them I kind of get a feel on the first two series how they’re gonna play me.”

It’s surprising to see a second-year make the kind of technical improvements Hankins took the time to make. It’s obviously not all film study, though, as Hankins’ physical gifts are often too much for offensive linemen to overcome. Despite his mastodon-like size, Hankins is deceptively quick. He has an impressively high motor too.

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While many view Jason Pierre-Paul as the most important player on the Giants defense, one could easily make the case that Hankins deserves that dubious honor. If JPP walks in free agency, the defensive line will still have Hankins. I truly believe that Hankins’ presence is more valuable to the team than Pierre-Paul’s. Hankins was consistent all year, and there’s no reason why he should slow down. Hankins will only be 23 next season, and he provides New York with a great piece to build around in the future.

Looking forward, the Giants have to make sure they retain Hankins for the long haul. They have seen Barry Cofield and Linval Joseph move on, but Hankins is a rare specimen.

We’ll have to wait until next year to see more of the Johnathan Hankins show, but don’t be surprised to his name on next year’s Pro Bowl ballot.

Next: Prince Amukamara finally starting to live up to the hype