NFL free agency: Predicting where top 25 projected players land in 2022
By Peter Panacy
. Running Back. New York Giants. Saquon Barkley. 7. player. 31
2022 NFL free agency: Saquon Barkley to NY Giants
*Updated Oct 1st – The Giants want to see Barkley bounce back with a strong season after picking up his 5th year option*
Usually, it’s a bad idea for teams to invest big money in running backs coming off their rookie contracts. Especially when a season-ending ACL tear has been factored into the mix recently.
But Giants running back Saquon Barkley is a bit of a different story.
There are only a handful of exceptions to this rule, and a healthy Barkley fits into that category. Plus, the Giants aren’t exactly in a situation where they have to decide between a franchise-caliber quarterback (sorry, Daniel Jones) and a star running back. With the G-Men’s quarterbacking issues likely to carry over into 2021, getting a star player like Barkley into the fold to maintain some prowess for what was one of the NFL’s worst offenses last year seems like a no-brainer.
Particularly, if the 2018 Pro Bowler is able to effectively bounce back from last year’s devastating injury.
Finishing up year four of his rookie deal in 2021, New York could either decide between a contract extension or his fifth-year option.
Barkley might like the former, while the Giants probably would prefer the latter. But either way, he’ll be back in New York in 2022.