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The New York Giants and running back Saquon Barkley being unable to come to an agreement before the Monday deadline for franchise-tagged players has been a hot topic.
And not just for Barkley, but also for the status of running backs across the league and the value they bring.
On a recent episode of his podcast, NFL analyst Ross Tucker said he believes it’s the Giants who have “messed up” the situation with their starting running back.
“I think they messed up here, and I’ll tell you why,” Tucker said. “I think on paper, especially given his injury history, it makes perfect sense. Tag him this year for $10 million, have him for the whole year, tag him again next year, $12 million or whatever, have him for that whole year. And by then you move on or you draft another running back or whatever, right? Because what are the odds that Saquon’s still explosive, still healthy, still productive in 2025? Totally, totally get that mindset.”
“What I would argue is they were close enough that I think it would’ve made sense to get that deal done,” he continued. “Give him another million a year if that gets it done. Give him two more million guaranteed if that gets it done because the games are not played on paper, the locker room matters.
“The vibe in the locker room, the feeling that the Giants are taking care of their guy. Now look, they took care of [Dexter] Lawrence, they took care of Daniel Jones. The Giants are usually very good at that, but I, I just think we’ll see how it plays out.”
Tucker went on to say that the aura of positivity in the locker room stemming from a Barkley deal would have been a plus. But now, he could potentially be a distraction and miss games.
But that would be very uncharacteristic of Barkley to miss games. That he didn’t agree to terms with the Giants speaks to his willingness to stand his ground on what he believes his value to be.
And the locker room agrees; his teammates support him and want him there.
Did the Giants “mess up” the handling of Barkley’s contract? Maybe. But that doesn’t mean it still won’t happen, either.
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