The New York Giants paid their starting quarterback, Daniel Jones, this offseason, inking him to the four-year, $160 million contract. That was a big piece of business taken care of but not the only big piece of business on general manager Joe Schoen’s to-do list.
Schoen also inked Pro Bowl defensive lineman Dexter Lawrence to a contract extension but has yet to come to an agreement with his other Pro Bowler, running back Saquon Barkley.
Barkley rejected all of the Giants’ offers, which led to the team using the franchise tag on him. The two sides are still seeking to make a deal but nothing has materialized.
The Giants have started their voluntary offseason workouts, including OTAs, and Barkley is not in attendance as he did not sign the franchise tag tender and therefore is not under contract.
On Thursday, Jones spoke with the media and was asked about the Barkley situation. He admitted he speaks with Saquon ‘pretty regularly’ but like his head coach Brian Daboll, didn’t take the bait when asked about Barkley’s contract status.
“That’s obviously Saquon’s business. That’s between him and the team,” said Jones. “Obviously, Saquon is a close friend of mine, and he’s been a very important part of what we’ve done here, and he’s a tremendous part of this offense. I hope they can get something done. That’s between them.”
Jones said Barkley was one of the many players he worked out with out in Arizona this offseason.
“We had a good turnout in Arizona. Just about everybody made it out there,” Jones added. “I think that was good for us to spend some time together. We spent some time on the field working out and introducing some stuff.”
Barkley will not incur any financial penalties for missing OTAs and the same will hold true for the team’s mandatory minicamp in June.
“Saquon’s a big part of what we’ve done here. He’s been a great teammate to everybody in the locker room. I think that says a lot about him as a guy,” Jones said again. “I hope they can get something done. He’s a great player and a big part of this team.”
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