Saquon Barkley and the Giants may have failed to agree on a long-term contract ahead of Monday’s deadline to extend players under the franchise tag, but the star running back isn't done thinking about how he can regain leverage.
Appearing on The Money Matters Podcast on YouTube, Barkley floated the idea of refusing to suit up alongside his New York teammates to begin the season, even suggesting that he could go as far as not playing at all in a move to show the Giants just how valuable he feels he is to the team.
“My leverage is I could say, ‘f--- you’ to the Giants, I could say, ‘f--- you to my teammates,’” Barkley said Monday on the podcast. “And be like, ‘You want me to show you my worth? You want me to show you how valuable I am to the team? I won’t show up. I won’t play a down.’ And that’s a play I could use.”
Barkley’s suggestion mirrors the move made by former All-Pro running back Le’Veon Bell when he sat out the entire 2018 season after failing to receive an extension from the Steelers. Bell eventually signed a four-year, $52.5 million with the Jets in free agency the following spring, but he never returned to the same elite form displayed while in Pittsburgh.
Though Barkley floated how he could hypothetically take the same approach as Bell, he made clear he isn’t eager to sit out and not contribute to the Giants’ success in 2023. He explained that he would want to speak with his family and his team of advisers before making such a drastic decision.
“Anybody [who] knows me, knows that’s not something I want to do,” Barkley continued. “Is it something that’s crossed my mind? I never thought I would ever do that, but now I’m at a point where I’m like, ‘Jesus, I might have to take it to this level.’ Am I prepared to take it to this level? I don’t know. That’s something I have to sit down and talk to my family, talk to my team [of advisers] and strategize about this. Can’t just go off of emotions. I can try to get as much money as I can, but what really matters is winning. I know if I’m able to help bring a championship to New York, that’s going to go miles more ahead than this contract.”
Barkley, 26, is set to earn just over $10 million if he signs the franchise tag and chooses to play in 2023. The former No. 2 pick and '18 Offensive Rookie of the Year is fresh off of a monstrous season that saw him amass 1,650 yards from scrimmage and 10 touchdowns as the key cog in an offense that helped guide New York to a 9-7-1 record and a playoff berth.
The Giants are seeking a trip back to the postseason in 2023 but have less than two months until they open the season against the Cowboys, at which point Barkley will have to make a decision: suit up or hold out.
