For NY Giants running back Saquon Barkley, the list of people who don’t think he’ll be able to bounce back in 2022 continues to grow. Despite Barkley looking sharp during OTAs and minicamp, not everyone believes that the former No. 2 overall pick is going to be a bonafide stud this upcoming season.
As it turns out, one offensive NFL coach isn’t even convinced Barkley knows how to play the position properly. ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler spoke with unnamed coaches, players and execs to come up with the Top 10 running backs in the league. Barkley was listed as an honorable mention, but the take from one coach is sure to raise some eyes.
NY Giants running back Saquon Barkley was destroyed by an unknown coach
"“I’m down on him — he still doesn’t know how to play running back enough,” the coach told Fowler. “He’s a bouncer. He wants every run to be a home run. He’s going to have to learn that 4-yard runs in this league are good, instead of stopping, cutting it back and losing 2. And he gets his ass kicked in protection.”"
Per this unknown guy, Barkley tried to do too much with the ball in his hands and he doesn’t have a clue on how to protect his quarterback when a would-be tackler tries to fight through him. This is all news to us, and it’s 100 percent something that is not going to make Barkley happy about whatsoever.
With Barkley working overtime this offseason – as he has a shredded look – the hope is that new head coach Brian Daboll can really help him get his career back on track. No one has forgotten about the monster rookie year Barkley had in 2018, which ended with him earning a trip to the Pro Bowl.
Things simply haven’t been the same since, as Barkley has battled injuries, unfortunately including his torn ACL during the 2020 campaign. Barkley didn’t look like his old self in 2021 during his return season, which was tough to see. A horrible offensive line didn’t help No. 26 at all.
Looking ahead to this winter, Andrew Thomas, Jon Feliciano, Mark Glowinski, Evan Neal and others will be ready to help Barkley look like his best self. Again, not everyone thinks Barkley has what it takes to be a standout in 2022, with the coach Fowler spoke to thinking he’s in for another long year. Go ahead and add this as more motivation for Barkley to silence everyone who has been doubting him and also throwing insults his way.