Why NY Giants’ Saquon Barkley is ready to return to form against Falcons

Saquon Barkley showed flashes for the NY Giants in a Week 2 loss against the Washington Football Team, might he return to form against the Falcons? 

“When will Saquon Barkley get back to his old self?” is a question that has been hanging over the NY Giants through the first two weeks of the season.

Barkley’s recovery from his knee injury last season has gone well in terms of him being able to return to play, but on the field, there has not been much to show for.

Against Denver, Barkley did not seem to have that same speed he had before his injury, which is understandable in his first game back.

The Washington game showed more of those quick cuts and initial speed through the hole, but still not to the level the Giants expect.

The holes themselves just were not there from the offensive line, PFF had them ranked the worst offensive line in football and that showed in the run game. In many plays, Barkley had multiple defenders near him before he reached the line of scrimmage.

Center Nick Gates also suffered a season-ending injury against Washington, which is even more unfortunate for the Giants’ run game.

No matter how great a running back is, a poor offensive line can ruin the player’s confidence and their game.

When Barkley is given the opportunity, he is as dangerous in open space as anybody in the league. His 41 yard rush in the first quarter was a flash of things to come and also a flash of the past.

This “past” for Barkley is not that long ago, in 2019 he rushed for over 1000 yards in 13 games with six touchdowns. 2018, his rookie year is the standout season with 1307 yards and 11 touchdowns.

Barkley has also been waiting to get back to being the receiving threat from 2018 where he finished with 91 receptions and 721 yards. In the past two games, he has only seen six total targets which is much lower than in previous years.

Quarterback Daniel Jones and Barkley are still building chemistry, and progress will come as they play more games together.

Week three against the Falcons is a great opportunity to show just how far Barkley has come in his return to the team.

Atlanta gives up 4.9 yards per carry defensively, which puts them in the worse half of the league in run defense.

The Giants should pound the ball against this defense if Barkley’s workload allows for it yet. Establishing the run game with Barkley early would open up this below-average defense in a must-win game.

New York only gave him the ball 13 times against Washington and 10 times against Denver which is not enough for a talent like him. Expect something in the 15-19 carry range against Atlanta, but there will be opportunities for 20+ yard runs.

While the offensive line will have to adjust to the loss of Nick Gates, running off the edge with tosses and other outside runs will be used to create opportunities for Barkley.

The Giants can use tight end, Kyle Rudolph, to take care of an extra rusher to buy Barkley enough time to get into open space and make special plays happen.

Jones has also played much better than he has in previous years, and draw plays will be more effective now that defenses have to worry about his arm.

This team is still young, and Atlanta will be a game that should be high-scoring, creating a lot of opportunities for this offense to get more game reps in and improve.

This means more rushing attempts for Barkley and even Devontae Booker, which will lead to more points for the Giants

After two games to get the rust off, the former Rookie of the Year is ready to show NY Giants fans what they were missing, he just needs the opportunity to do so.