Former Penn State Nittany Lion and current New York Giant [autotag]Saquon Barkley[/autotag] will not sign the team’s franchise tag they placed on him, ESPN reported. He had previously stated he didn’t want to have the tag placed on him and with the deadline to sign the tender being Monday, he seems to be standing firm on that stance.
The team and Barkley have remained in negotiations but have yet to reach a deal. Owner John Mara spoke previously about how much he wants Barkley to be a part of the team now and in the future going as far as to say he wants him to retire as a Giant. General manager Joe Schoen has also stated that the Giants want a long-term contract for the former Nittany Lion. However, he declined the team’s offer last November of a deal worth approximately $12 million per year.
Important to note, the deadline on Monday is for Barkley to participate in the Giants offseason program. For the team and Barkley to come to an agreement on a long-term deal the deadline is July 15 otherwise he will make $10.091 million in 2023 under the one-year franchise tag.
Barkley is coming off a successful, and healthy, 2022 season for the first time since his rookie year in 2018. He found himself fourth in the NFL with 1,312 rushing yards, 10 touchdowns and a total of 1,650 yards from scrimmage which nearly won him the AP Comeback Player of the Year.
[lawrence-auto-related count=3 category=13 tag=117]
[mm-video type=playlist id=01ey902ehrs6e9bvhw player_id=01eqbvp13nn1gy6hd4 image=]