Despite Saquon Barkley having parted ways with the New York Giants months ago, the star running back is still linked to his former team through HBO’s “Hard Knocks.”
The popular show has detailed Barkley’s departure from the team this offseason, and, according to a trailer for the latest episode, which airs Tuesday night, Giants general manager Joe Schoen may have made more of an effort to keep Barkley than initially thought.
“I offered him today a three-year deal at $12.5 (million) APY and $25 (million) guaranteed to be a Giant,” Schoen said.
“I’m going to have a tough time sleeping if Saquon goes,” Giants president and CEO John Mara responded.
Schoen’s offer is only $250K less than the three-year, $37.75M deal Barkley ultimately signed with the Giants division-rival Philadelphia Eagles.
After he signed with the Eagles, Barkley even insinuated that the Giants never gave him a contract offer after the season ended, which is why he landed in Philly.
Previous episodes of “Hard Knocks” also make it look like Schoen was disinterested in bringing Barkley back. He was shown stating that the team isn’t paying quarterback Daniel Jones to handoff to a $12M-per-year running back.
Another clip in a different episode showed a conversation between the two in which Schoen told Barkley the Giants were going to let him see what was out there in free agency before asking if Barkley would promise to let him match any offer he was given by another team.
