NFL Trade Rumors: Giants not actively shopping Saquon Barkley
New York Giants running back Saquon Barkley has been in trade talk rumors this off-season. With not much progress, it seems like the Giants may hold on to the star running back.
The New York Giants had a memorable season that saw them finish 4-13 last year. Since then, the Giants have already replaced former head coach Joe Judge with former Buffalo Bills offensive coordinator Brian Daboll. The team also replaced recently retired general manager Dave Gettleman with Joe Schoen. More changes could be made in this off-season.
According to Judy Battista in a Tweet on Sunday morning, the Giants are not shopping Saquon Barkley. Still, if a trade opportunity came along that Joe Schoen and Brian Daboll thought the Giants should take, Mara would not stand in the way of a personnel decision.
More Mara: The Giants are not shopping Saquon Barkley, but if a trade opportunity came along that Schoen and Daboll thought the Giants should take, Mara would not stand in the way of a personnel decision.
Mara said:
“We’re not shopping Saquon, but Joe’s the general manager,” Mara said at The Breakers luxury oceanside resort. “If he and the head coach want to make a personnel decision and have a conviction about it, I’m not gonna interfere with it. But that’s not something we’re actively looking to do, let’s put it that way.”
This usually means that the Giants aren't getting the type of compensation offered in return for Barkley. It was reported at the combine that the Giants would only get a fifth-round pick in exchange for the star running back. It seems as if those rumors are valid if there's been no progress on a Barkley trade.
According to CBS Sports in early February, the Giants were expected to move on from Barkley and cornerback James Bradberry this off-season. While Bradberry's name is still in trade talks, it seems that it's safer for Barkley to remain a Giant at the start of the season.
The New York Giants are expected to move on from Saquon Barkley and James Bradberry. per @CBSSports
The Giants drafted Saquon Barkley second overall in the first round of the 2018 NFL draft
New York thought very highly of Barkley when he came out of Penn State. The Giants selected Barkley second overall in the 2018 draft. It's rare for a running back to go in the first round or top 10 these days, let alone in the first two selections of the draft.
In his four-year career, Barkley has rushed for 2,927 yards, 19 touchdowns while recording 190 receptions for 1,482 yards and eight touchdowns. When healthy, Barkley is one of the most productive and explosive backs in the league. Whoever he will be playing for to start the 2022 season will be healthy and looking to bounce back to his usual self.