Running back Saquon Barkley didn’t have to answer questions about his Giants future at the end of the 2022 regular season because the Giants were going to the playoffs, but there’s no such respite in sight this year.
The Giants will wrap up a losing campaign with Sunday’s game against the Eagles and that will again leave Barkley with an uncertain future. He played out this season on a one-year deal he agreed to after being franchise tagged early in the offseason and could be tagged again in 2024, but he reiterated on Wednesday that he would prefer a longer deal that sets him up to spend his entire career with the Giants.
Barkley also said that he doesn’t think that desire weighs heavily on the way the team views things, however.
“I’ve mentioned before that I wanted to be a Giant for life,” Barkley said from the team’s locker room, via SNY. “That was a goal of mine when I got drafted. I wanted to leave a legacy here, but it’s out of my control. I truly have no say. It’s really up to those guys upstairs. . . . Me sitting here saying I want to be a Giant for life like I did last year doesn’t help or doesn’t hurt, so I’ll just leave it up to those guys.”
Barkley was also asked if a fresh start is appealing to him.
“Did a fresh start cross my mind? I guess anybody — when you look at the season, the way it went — that anybody would want a fresh start,” Barkley said. “I’m not saying somewhere else, just a clean slate. That’s how I look at it, to be honest. If I hit the open market, that’s God’s plan for me to get another opportunity and to continue to try to create a legacy for myself in my football career.”
Another franchise tag would carry a $12.1 million salary for the 2024 season and the window to use it will run from February 20 to March 5 this year.
