Sports

There Is An Update On Saquon Barkley-New York Giants Contract Situation

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Giants running back

Getty Image / Tim Nwachukwu


There’s not a more talented running back in the NFL than New York Giants running back Saquon Barkley. The former Penn State Nittany Lion has an incredible combination of tools.

Simply put, he’s an absolute freak. Saquon Barkley has 4.4 speed inside of a 230lb frame with muscles in places that even his peers in the NFL don’t have them. His weightlifting feats at Penn State are the stuff of legends. Couple all of that with arguably the best lateral quickness in the NFL, and you have a monster.

Saquon Barkley got off to a ferocious start for the New York Giants after being taken 2nd overall in the 2018 draft. He had 2000 yards from scrimmage in his rookie year, and was a stud in his second season as well. But, a torn ACL early in the 2020 season carried on into 2021, threatening his career after a subpar 2021. But, fully healthy in 2022, he was back to being arguably the league’s best running back. He had 1,650 total yards from scrimmage in 2022, carrying a Giants offense devoid of weapons all the way to the NFC Divisional Round.

But, his rookie contract is up, and the New York Giants franchise tagged him after the season to avoid him going to free agency. But, it’s unclear if the 26-year-old is willing to play on the franchise tag, rather than a long-term guaranteed deal that would secure his financial future.

Negotiations for a long-term deal have broken down, but it seems like there could be some movement toward reconvening negotiations. Here is ESPN with more details.

The New York Giants had conversations with running back Saquon Barkley’s representatives last week. They’ll “reconvene” now that the draft is over to see if there is a deal that makes sense for both sides at this point.

An unhappy Barkley has not signed his franchise tag and therefore is not participating in the voluntary portion of the team’s offseason program. The two sides were not able to reach agreement on a new long-term deal prior to the tag deadline last month.

General manager Joe Schoen and the Giants removed any of the previous offers from the table at that point. They might be motivated to return to the negotiating table now that the draft is over.

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“Yeah, we’ll talk this coming week now that the draft is over, kind of reconvene, see if [a new offer] makes sense or not,” Schoen said. “Have dialogue now that the draft is over.”

The Giants made an offer to Barkley during their bye week last year. They reignited negotiations after the season, just weeks before the running back market crashed in free agency.

It’s just hard to justify paying a running back big money, especially one that has a significant knee injury in their past. But, if anyone deserves it, it is Saquon Barkley, and the Giants know that.