new york giants With their new regime of general manager Joe Schoen and head coach Brian Dabol, they exceeded expectations, reaching the playoffs as a wild-card team and winning their first playoff game since 2011.
But Schoen and Dabol know this offseason will be critical to continuing that success as several key players are about to hit free agency.
star running back saquon barkley He is one of those players. Barkley and quarterback Daniel Jones sit at the top of the priority list for Schoen. They have already discussed about possible expansion.
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New York Giants running back Saquon Barkley (26) and quarterback Daniel Jones (8) during their NFC Divisional Playoff game against the Philadelphia Eagles on January 21, 2023 at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia.
(Rich Gressel/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
“We were never really that close,” said Schoen. Fox Sports’ Ralph Vaciano, who reported that Barkley had been offered a multi-year deal worth $12 million per season. Barkley reportedly declined that offer.
“Listen, Saquon has done everything we’ve asked him to do, and he’s a good football player,” said Schoen. “Positional value … We’ll consider how we want to build this team and allocate our resources. That’s what it comes down to.”
Daniel Jones, Saquon Barkley comment on Giants future after playoff exit
Vaciano reports Barkley is hoping for a deal in line with san francisco 49ers Running back Christian McCaffrey received – $16 million per season.
However, Barkley said on Monday he would be “realistic”.
“I’m not really worried about any market reset,” he explained. “I know what I was on pace to do, but two years riddled with injuries and one season not performing to the level I know I can perform (last year) doesn’t help.”
Saquon Barkley of the New York Giants celebrates after scoring a touchdown in the second quarter of the game against the Washington Commanders at MetLife Stadium. December 4, 2022, in East Rutherford, NJ
(Jamie Squire / Getty Images)
The Giants have the franchise tag in their back pocket if they want to use it on Barkley, though Barkley might not want to go that route. Teams sometimes use the tag to add negotiation time to longer-term deals, which is an option when it comes to New York.
The returning franchise tag for next season would be worth $10.1 million for one year.
Daniel Jones, Saquon Barkley guide Giants to first playoff win since Super Bowl XLVI
The Big Blue has plenty of salary cap space to work with this offseason. OverTheCap.com has the Giants with the third most cap space in the league at $54 million. Jones played well enough to convince the Giants that he had what it took to lead them on offense.
Defensive lineman Dexter Lawrence could also be in line for his fifth-year option at $12.4 million. However, the Giants saw a tremendous jump in production from him this season that could warrant an extension.
Safety Julian Love is also a free agent along with wide receiver Sterling Shepard and center John Feliciano.
Saquon Barkley of the New York Giants warms up before kickoff against the Dallas Cowboys at MetLife Stadium September 26, 2022 in East Rutherford, NJ
(Cooper Neal/Getty Images)
However, it was clear that the Giants’ offense ran through Barkley, and he had 1,312 rushing yards on 295 attempts (4.4 yards per carry) and 10 touchdowns. He also caught 57 of his 76 targets for 338 yards.
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As Barkley mentioned, his torn ACL and injury history will affect the Giants’ thinking. But he has shown, when healthy, that he can be a game-changing back, like McCaffrey Since then the business has been carried out in the Bay Area.