The New York Giants dealt wide receiver Kadarius Toney to the Kansas City Chiefs prior to the NFL trade deadline and then remained relatively silent at the deadline.
Calls were made, but ultimately, general manager Joe Schoen and the Giants stood pat.
But not all of those calls were outgoing. Schoen acknowledged during his bye week press conference on Tuesday that at least one call was inbound. And it was rebuffed because the target was a “good player.”
“We got a call on one player on Monday. It was a hard ‘no.’ I’m not going to say which player. It was a good player,” Schoen told reporters.
So, which player was it? It’s relatively easy to narrow down given that the Giants’ roster isn’t exactly deep.
It could have been defensive linemen Leonard Williams or Dexter Lawrence, kicker Graham Gano, safeties Julian Love or Xavier McKinney, or right tackle Andrew Thomas.
Are we forgetting anyone?
Oh, yeah… There’s running back Saquon Barkley, who was almost certainly the focus of that call and the “hard no” in response. And that begs the question: do the Giants now view Barkley as their long-term answer at running back and will he be signed to an extension?
“Saquon’s a great kid; he’s tough. He’s obviously talented,” Schoen said. “I think him being healthy this year, you’ve kind of seen who he is and what he can do, whether that’s catching the ball or running the ball. Again, it’s credit to the offensive line and the receivers blocking for him. And he’s taken advantage of those opportunities with his God-given gifts too and helped us a lot. So, I’m pleased with where Saquon is.”
If the Giants didn’t intend to sign Barkley — or whichever “good player” was the focus of the call — then they would have traded them. So whether it was Saquon or someone else, one of these players can expect to be signed to an extension.
