Saquon Barkley: Giants ‘really weren’t in play’ in free agency

While there was a media and fan base obsession throughout the offseason over whether or not Saquon Barkley would return to the New York Giants, Barkley said the Giants “really weren’t in play” as a possible landing spot.

Barkley told Dianna Russini of The Athletic on the ‘Scoop City’ podcast that the Giants were not one of the three teams he considered signing with this offseason.

“They really weren’t in play I guess you could say come to find out and see the reality of it,” Barkley told Russini. “When you look at ‘Hard Knocks’ you make it seem like oh like this was like a thing that was going on every single day but it really wasn’t.

“‘Hard Knocks’ did a really good job. It looks juicy, it looks like okay there actually could have been a thing and they [the Giants] pulled out the last second. In reality, the whole time me and my agent were talking on our side like we don’t think that the Giants are even going to do anything.”

‘Fed up’

Barkley told Russini that before the phone call shown on ‘Hard Knocks’ between him and GM Joe Schoen that he had only talked to the Giants once during the offseason.

Barkley was aware that some thought his tone during that call showed a lack of interest. He said “that’s how I talk” and he “didn’t want to come off like I’m begging.”

“I was a little fed up a little bit to be honest because we talked after the season. They were like ‘Do you still want to be a Giant?’ and I was like I already said where I want to be like I said on the phone. They said we’re going to figure it out, we’re going to make it work, we’ll talk to your agent. Then they said at the combine, they talked to my agent, they said that we’ll have a deal, we’ll have something ready for you, then come to find out they didn’t want to send me an offer because they want to be disrespectful or whatever Joe said on that episode or that scene and then the phone call when it was kind of weird for me,” Barkley said.

“I felt like the only way the Giants wanted me if I was able to go show my work to someone like I was able to go prove that a team would want to pay me so maybe then they would want to pay me.”

The Barkley/Giants contract saga began, of course, after the 2022 season.

“I never feel like we really got a fair negotiation once I got tagged,” Barkley said. “They sent me something before the tag deadline and I didn’t agree with it, felt like the guaranteed money wasn’t there. All I asked was I’m fine with this contract, can we just guarantee the first two years. They tagged me and I was like I already know how this is going to go. Joe was like, I’ll talk to the ownership, we’ll get back to you, and then crickets.

“I get the business but it’s like they have the tag, so when they tag me now they have all the leverage and it’s just like alright I get you have all the leverage and you should do this, you’re doing your job but at the end of the day can I get some respect, too? Can we get this thing going, can we find a way, the same way how you found a way to get DJ [Daniel Jones] done how you get Dex [Dexter Lawrence] done and Andrew [Thomas] done could we find a way to get me done”?

Barkley said he “never got the sense that he [Schoen] truly valued my position and that’s okay.”

“You stare at the pot and you see that they [have] got to get the offensive linemen and this and it’s like alright looking at the Giants is it more important to go out there and get three offensive linemen or spend that money or get one or maybe two and try to spend it on what you want, what you value,” Barkley said. “I don’t think the New York Giants are San Fran, Philly, Houston, or some of these teams where they might be a running back away or they might be one key player away from making it to the next step, and if that’s what they believed in and they chose to do that then I’m fine with that. All I asked was for me to get my opportunity to go able and get the most money that I can possibly get and they gave me that.”

Testing free agency

Barkley said he bet on himself and that “I came out on top in that scenario.” When free agency began, though, he wasn’t sure what he would find.

“​​I was concerned, too, knowing with the market I just got tagged the year before. Obviously, I wasn’t getting tagged, everyone saying this and that about the running back market, no one truly really knew where it was going to be, but thankful for my agent Ed [Berry] and my team keeping me cool, calm, collected, saying don’t worry, we’re going to make this work, we’re going to get it right, and then come to find out when I hit the open market what I thought would happen actually happened,” Barkley said.

“I feel like the Giants thought I was going to go out there and get nine [million], maybe eight, stretch at 10 and then I’ll come back to them and it’s like alright, well we got you if you want to come play at nine you come play at nine, which I think that truly would have got it done. I think that’s just where they valued me at or Joe valued me at. He had a price point where he was willing to pay and he wasn’t going to go over and you know ‘kudos’ to him for sticking to stick to his gut, but yeah that’s how I feel and I kind of felt like it was a little disrespectful, to be honest. It’s kind of like a slap in the face, but you go see what you are worth and then if you’re worth that we’ll see if you’re worth it, maybe we’ll match it.”

Barkley ended up getting $12.5 million per year over three years from the Philadelphia Eagles, with $26 million guaranteed.

Moving on

Barkley admitted that it “hurt” to leave the Giants.

“I was like damn like it’s going to suck, it hurt. I wanted to do this and that’s why it hurts because I’m the type of player or type person I envision things like I wanted to be a part of New York and the success and be a part of that organization, and I’m happy that I was, so like it was like damn, okay it’s coming to an end but at the end of the day I’m not retiring, my career wasn’t, I still have a lot ball left, so I was like alright you put that chapter aside and you’re thankful for that chapter and then you move on.”

Barkley would not divulge the other two teams he considered, but said signing with the Eagles was “a no-brainer.”

“I feel like it’s going to be the best chance for me to succeed as a player, succeed in my career — and the team,” Barkley said. “The most important thing, where can I go as a team where I feel like I can actually help a team take it to the next level where they’re trying to go, and it was Philly.

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