No one knows what to expect out of the New York Giants this year after another front office and coaching staff overall this offseason.
They are in a transition phase in which general manager Joe Schoen is in the very advent of his building process. With a new coaching staff led by head coach Brian Daboll, it’s anyone’s guess on which player – or players – will lead Big Blue throughout this pivotal season.
In a recent article predicting each NFC team’s non-quarterback MVP this season, NFL.com’s Kevin Patra picked fifth-year running back Saquon Barkley to be the Giants’ man.
“If Big Blue is going to stun prognosticators, Barkley will be at the forefront of that effort. Since his dynamic rookie season (NFL-best 2,028 scrimmage yards), the running back has missed 21 games and never looked fully back from his ACL tear last season.
But if he can return to form in 2022, Barkley is a dual-threat weapon who can control games and be the ideal security blanket for Daniel Jones. We haven’t seen the real Saquon in years — the man with the Barry Sanders-type moves in the open field who can burn past DBs. In what amounts to a make-or-break campaign, here’s betting Barkley can get back on track.”
It’s a pretty good bet that Barkley will be more productive in Daboll’s system should he be able to stay somewhat healthy. That’s a big ask, however, as Barkley has had three straight seasons marred by various injuries.
The Giants don’t have much else in the backfield for Barkley to compete with at the moment. Matt Breida was signed in free agency, but he is a committee back. Second-year back Gary Brightwell is mainly on the roster for his special teams prowess.
There are several other hopefuls such as Antonio Williams and Jashaun Corbin but, again, they are unknown quantities at the moment.
