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New York Giants running back Saquon Barkley hoped he could bounce back from a devastating ACL injury in 2021 only to find out that all comebacks aren’t successful.
Not right away, anyhow.
The plan was to ramp Barkley back up slowly and then turn him loose as the season progressed. That actually happened, but the results fell way short of expectations.
Barkley rushed for 593 yards on 162 carries (3.7 YPC) with just two touchdowns and caught 41 passes for 263 yards and two more scores in 13 games this season.
That’s about half of what was expected of Barkley. As he enters the final season of his rookie contract this year, he’ll have to show more to management in order to warrant a new contract or extension.
Barkley spoke to the media on Monday and, after dodging questions about Joe Judge’s future, was very coy about his own. Barkley expressed his disappointment over this season and told us he can only continue to work hard and get better.
The former No. 2 overall pick out of Penn State nervously rocked back-and-forth as he was peppered with questions about the state of the team and its future. He commented on the avalanche of criticism that has rained down on him and the Giants this year:
“For everyone outside in the world who were fans but may not be fans right now, for you guys [in the media] who are going to write something positive or mostly something negative about me, just make sure you guys stay on that side of the table when things turn around,” Barkley said.
Additionally, Barkley had many good things to say about the man who drafted him, outgoing general manager Dave Gettleman, and was asked what he expected from Gettleman’s replacement.
“I have no clue,” Barkley said. “I can’t control that. Whoever we bring in, my mindset is that I’m here, I’m a leader for this team. I’m going to go into the offseason trying to improve all areas of my game so I can be the player I know I am and help this team get back in the right direction.”
Barkley is under contract for one more season at a salary of $7.2 million. The Giants are locked into paying him unless they can find a trade partner who will assume that contract.
Barkley did not display his game-breaking ability play-in and play-out this year. The poor offensive line play and the perplexing play calling didn’t help his efforts, either, but and the end of the day he did not resemble the superstar he once was back in 2018. And that is what will be on people’s mind going forward.
The new general manager will look at the numbers and see that Barkley and his backup, Devontae Booker, both rushed for 593 yards this year and that Booker had a better YPC average (4.1) and caught just one less pass that Barkley.
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