Henry Baker’s second tour of duty as a Rutgers football assistant was a short one, but he’s not going far

The Paterson native is expected to join the Giants' coaching staff as an assistant defensive backs coach, a person with knowledge of the hire told NJ Advance Media. The hire was first reported by Football Scoop; Baker is expected to replace Deshea Townsend, who recently took a job with the Bears.

Baker, who previously served a minority coaching internship with the Giants, is on the move again less than two months after he was re-hired as Rutgers' cornerbacks coach and pass game coordinator. Baker coached at North Carolina last season; he had previously served as Rutgers' cornerbacks coach in 2017.

Baker had signed a two-year contract paying him a base salary of $275,000 annually. Baker will owe Rutgers a $30,000 buyout fee in order to break the deal, which only became official on Jan. 2 of this year, according to contract details obtained by NJ Advance Media following an open records request.

Baker’s departure means head coach Chris Ash now has two openings to fill on his staff with about a month to go before the start of spring practice. Baker had replaced Cory Robinson on staff. Robinson, a Baltimore native, left Rutgers earlier this week after one season to take a job on new Maryland coach Mike Locksley’s staff, his old boss.

Rutgers' next cornerbacks coach will be its fourth different assistant to handle the position under Ash. Aaron Henry was an assistant defensive backs coach in 2016, but he focused on the corners while Bill Busch focused on the safeties. The next position coach will inherit a room with one returning starter - freshman Avery Young - as well as redshirt sophomore Tre Avery, who missed almost all of this past season due to injury but is expected to be a favorite to win the other starting job.

James Kratch may be reached at jkratch@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @JamesKratch. Find NJ.com Rutgers Football on Facebook.