Thanks to “Hard Knocks: Offseason with the New York Giants,” running back Saquon Barkley has been able to see what the team thought of him behind closed doors.
Barkley’s reaction to episode 3, in which he was the central figure, has been mixed.
During a recent sit-down interview with Dianna Russini on Scoop City, Barkley admitted to feeling disrespected by Giants general manager Joe Schoen while also offering him kudos for sticking with his hard-line during negotiations.
“I was a little fed up, to be honest,” Barkley said of his phone call with Schoen. “It felt like the only way the Giants wanted me (was) if I was able to go show my worth to someone. Like, I (had) to go prove that a team would want to pay me, so then, maybe, they would want to pay me.”
Barkley acknowledged that he wanted to remain with the Giants even at that point but was tired of feeling like he was made to beg. And when the call ended between he and Schoen, the realization hit that his time with the organization was likely over.
“I kind of felt like it was a little disrespectful, to be honest. Because it’s kind of like a slap in the face,” Barkley said of the Giants devaluing him.
“It was over after that phone call.”
The negotiations, which lasted nearly two years, had weighed down both Barkley and the Giants. Each side was exhausted by the end, but the two-time Pro Bowler admits to understanding the business side of things.
“Joe, he made a comment that (negotiations) took 10 years off his life. It took 10 years off your life? What do you think it did for me?” Barkley said.
When the time came to choose his next destination, Barkley sat down with his family to discuss their options. The Giants were not even under consideration.
That end had been brewing for quite some time. Barkley already felt dismayed by negotiations the year prior when he ended up playing on a modified version of the franchise tag.
While he wasn’t upset with Daniel Jones, Andrew Thomas, and Dexter Lawrence landing their big-money deals, Barkley didn’t feel he was given a fair shake.
“I never felt like we really got a fair negotiation,” Barkley said, adding that the Giants’ pre-franchise tag offer lacked adequate guaranteed money.
Again, Barkley says, he felt disrespected at the time.
When it came to choosing his next destination, Barkley used that perceived disrespect as a motivating factor. There’s a reason why he’ll be wearing Philadelphia Eagles green in 2024 and not some other color.
“I bet on myself and I came out on top,” he said.
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