Saquon Barkley has no regrets about contract, hopes future is with Giants،
IT WAS OCTOBER. 20, two days before the Week 7 game with the Washington Commanders, and Saquon Barkley was taking a visit. The New York Giants running back had just taken the field at the Quest Diagnostics Training Center when he noticed coach Brian Daboll and general manager Joe Schoen walking towards him.
Barkley had fielded questions the day before about the possibility of being moved before Tuesday’s trade deadline.
“Yeah, that’s not happening,” Daboll told his two-time Pro Bowler.
The Giants (2-5) have let Barkley know they intend to keep him despite their slow start, but that doesn’t mean it’s set in stone.
Wide receiver Kadarius Toney was traded to the Kansas City Chiefs last year, months after Schoen insisted he wasn’t shopping for him, and Odell Beckham Jr. was traded to the Cleveland Browns by the previous regime after then-general manager Dave Gettleman insisted he had. I’m not signing him to trade him.
“I don’t think it made me feel better or worse,” Barkley told ESPN of his conversation with Daboll and Schoen. “It wasn’t like I was too concerned about it, to be honest. And I never even thought about it until the issue came up. I didn’t even realize when the date was limit of trade.”
If Barkley is not traded, he will become a free agent or be tagged for the second straight year after failing to reach an agreement on a new deal.
The first contract offer the Giants made to Barkley came last November in Week 9. That amount was thought to be in the range of $12 million per year, not exactly Christian McCaffrey’s stratosphere, but on the order of Cleveland’s Nick Chubb and Tennessee’s Derrick Henry, who were among the lineups used by the Giants. But those initial deals had mechanics that made Barkley undesirable, including a $1 million per season per-game bonus, meaning he wouldn’t get it if he didn’t play.
Multiple league sources said this was an unusually high amount tied to such a bonus and would make players wary of such a deal. Ultimately, Barkley decided the guaranteed amount wasn’t enough, and so discussions were shelved until the offseason.
Barkley was six minutes away from free agency before the March 7 franchise deadline, and his agents were confident there was at least one suitor willing to pay market value to enter negotiations with the Giants for his services . But he never got there.
Barkley had a guaranteed $10.1 million franchise tag for this season. The Giants have the potential to use another franchise tag next year for $12.1 million. That would be $22.2 million for both seasons, which is often used as a baseline for negotiations.
The Giants didn’t get there until the end, according to a source. The July 17 deadline passed without a deal.
Barkley took the risk and skirted the guaranteed amount by just over $22 million. He eschewed the advice of many in his camp and agreed to an adjusted franchise tag that included an initial $2 million signing bonus and nearly $1 million in hard-to-achieve incentives.
Barkley was there on the first day of training camp, not wanting to miss it or jeopardize his desire to be a “giant for life.”
“I want to create a legacy, and the way to do that is to continue to stay with a team throughout your career,” Barkley said. “As I see the NFL and see the business, you know, it’s less likely to happen for the players. But if you’re able to accomplish that, that’s special.”
SEVERAL OF The NFL’s top running backs took part in a Zoom call this summer to discuss how their position was unfairly compensated. Barkley and Indianapolis Colts star Jonathan Taylor was among the attendees.
Taylor requested a trade three days after the July 22 call because the Colts refused to extend his contact. Taylor did not participate in team drills during the summer or training camp due to lingering effects from right ankle surgery, but after an often bitter and public feud, the teams were granted an extension of three years and $42 million on October 7.
Barkley, meanwhile, hasn’t missed a single day of training camp after skipping the offseason workout program.
“Jonathan Taylor did a really good job,” Barkley said. “You know, he kept his word, did what he wanted to do and made a deal.”
As for what he learned from how Taylor handled the process, Barkley laughed and said, “I think I did it wrong. I learned a lot.”
But Barkley said he doesn’t regret how he handled his situation and disagrees with the perception he gave in to by signing the label. He said his team advised him — he added CAA agent Ed Berry in the spring — to handle things differently, which included not signing his franchise tag until later in the summer and more deep into training camp.
“[I] said: ‘You know what? I’m going to shut up – hopefully, you know, show up, put a smile on my face, work hard, do things the right way,” Barkley said. “ “Things will be sorted out. ‘
“And unfortunately, that’s not the case. But you could also learn from the way Jonathan Taylor did it. In the end, all you want is to be able to say that you settled down and get a long term deal., and get the money you deserve – to help keep your family safe. And hats off to him.
ALIBAY BARKLEY WILL BE will be at MetLife on Sunday to cheer on his son, even though he’ll be sporting a New York Jets tattoo. Alibay raised his son to be a Jets fan.
During Barkley’s first game against the Jets in 2019, Alibay was watching as a Jets fan.
“Finally, for the first time — I mean, it’s only the second time I’ve played against them — but he told me he hoped we would win,” Barkley said.
From the moment Barkley was drafted No. 2 overall in 2018, he was a success in New York. Barkley exploded onto the scene with a record-breaking season that earned him Offensive Rookie of the Year. He set the Giants’ rookie rushing record with 1,307 yards, led the NFL with 2,028 yards from scrimmage and had seven runs of 40-plus and six 50-plus yards.
Barkley insisted last week that he didn’t want to be traded. He still feels a certain attitude toward the organization and has a life and family that feels at home in New Jersey. New York’s spotlight and marketing and business opportunities have helped make it the desired destination.
“Why do I feel like I fit in so well here? I just feel like I’m trying to be myself,” he said. “Be real, be authentic. And I feel like a lot of people could relate to that, especially in this area.
“I was born in [the Bronx], grew up in Pennsylvania. But my whole family is from New York. So I was kind of raised in a New York mindset. “
And this mindset is not one that tolerates loss. This is necessary because the Giants haven’t won much since Barkley arrived. Last year was the first time in his career that they had a winning record or reached the playoffs.
That didn’t stop Barkley from going all the way. When asked about the team considering deals at the trade deadline, he called it “a loser’s mindset,” despite their current record.
The Giants are in year two of the Schoen/Daboll regime and Barkley believes the last two weeks show they are back on track.
“It shows you who he is as a person,” receiver Sterling Shepard said. “A lot of people will chase money or whatever, it’s there for the right reasons.”
This season, Barkley has already been hampered by injury as a sprained right ankle cost him three games. He averages 3.8 yards per carry, which is tied for 30th, and has one rushing touchdown. But the Giants’ offense has been significantly better with him on the field, averaging 321 total yards compared to 222 without him.
“I know how special it would be to help bring glory to this city. And that’s something I want to do,” he said. “So even though there haven’t been a lot of wins, I don’t believe in just giving up and quitting. That’s not how I was raised. I believe in holding on the blow and fight. And you have that mindset and it’s going to change, and I think we’re starting to see that.”
Barkley knows it’s not ideal to play on a one-year deal with the possibility of landing another franchise.
As one league executive explained, if Barkley had had the best season of his career, he would be considered to have added a lot more miles to his body, which is not ideal for a 27-year-old running back. years old who enters the 7th year. .
“I know they say, you know, when you’re 28, 29, 30, I don’t believe it,” Barkley said. “I feel like back then, these guards were playing forever. They were playing until they were in their 30s, they were playing from 10 to 13 years old. And that’s something I want to do.”
Whether he plays for the Giants in his 30s could depend on the remaining 10 games and how things go in the offseason.
