Tiki Barber, the New York Giants all-time leading rusher, says the team isn’t doing right by their current star running back, Saquon Barkley.
“He has a lot of choices, and none of them are good for him,” Tiki said on his daily radio program on WFAN in New York.
“Choice No. 1, like Josh Jacobs, sit out. That makes the Giants worse. That sucks for the Giants, it sucks for Saquon Barkley, it’s a bad option, but it’s the only one that he can make a solid point about with the situation. He could sit out training camp, make a statement, but what does that really do? The Giants would be fine because he’s available, and he doesn’t get anything.”
Barkley was assigned the franchise tag in March, which is worth a guaranteed $10.1 million for this season should he sign the tender.
The two-time Pro Bowler has refused to do that in hopes of landing a longer-term deal. But that plan went up in smoke as no such deal was reached at by Monday afternoon’s deadline.
“I think he’s contemplating what he should do and what would be most impactful,” continued Barber. “He has one choice that’s meaningful, and that is to report on time, be the best teammate you can be, crush it, help the Giants go to the postseason, maybe push into the playoffs, and prove it, but not get paid by the Giants.
“There is nothing you can do other than show up and ball.”
Barkley will not be fined for sitting out training camp and/or the Giants’ three preseason games (which he probably wouldn’t have played in anyway), but will not get paid for any regular season games he sits out of.
Tiki sees this stance by the Giants — which on the surface doesn’t seem fair, but from a 2023 NFL business standpoint is the right move — as the ‘beginning of the end’ for Saquon as a Giant.
The Giants have the option of ‘franchising’ Barkley again next year at an estimated salary of $13 million but many experts are saying that doesn’t seem likely.
“The Giants aren’t doing right by him now. Why would they do right by him a year from now when he’s a year older? The Giants aren’t going to pay him,” Barber said.
A healthy, dominant season could change that. Maybe.
