He may be a Dallas Cowboys legend, but that doesn’t mean that the one and only Emmitt Smith can’t show some love to NY Giants running back Saquon Barkley. Smith is a big fan of No. 26, and he’s been left favorably impressed several times following a big game from the Big Blue playmaker.
Everyone, including Smith, is waiting to see what kind of a deal Barkley gets from NY. However, there’s still a chance, as small as it might be, that the Giants let Barkley walk and sign elsewhere in free agency.
If that were to happen, Smith would be disgusted. The Hall of Famer wants to see the Giants agree to terms with Barkley as soon as possible.
In the opinion of one very great running back, the Giants can’t afford to fumble away Saquon Barkley, writes @SBondyNYDN
— New York Daily News (@NYDailyNews) February 11, 2023
"If they don’t bring him back, shame on them," Hall of Famer Emmitt Smith says.https://t.co/oGQPbG35zd
Emmitt Smith is calling for the NY Giants to give Saquon Barkley a new deal
"“If they don’t bring him back, shame on them,” Smith said via Stefan Bondy of the NY Daily News. “Daniel Jones cannot be Daniel Jones without Saquon. And that team cannot be what it is without Saquon doing what he did this year. What you saw is a guy that’s healthy can do a lot of great things. It would be foolish of the Giants to let Saquon go.”"
Following the Senior Bowl, the expectation was that general manager Joe Schoen and Barkley’s reps would get back to the negotiating table. It’s unclear how much Barkley is going to want per campaign, but there’s a lot of speculation that he’s eyeing $14-15 million per year. He was reportedly offered around $12 million a season during the bye week, but he turned it down.
In addition to making Barkley happy, Schoen needs to make something happen with Daniel Jones too. Could one of them get tagged and return to East Rutherford in 2023 on that deal? Potentially. Schoen is going to have to get creative, but the expectation is that Barkley will land his new contract.
There’s no question he deserves this, as he’s coming off his first Pro Bowl season since his rookie year. Smith wants to see this happen for Saquon. All eyes are on Schoen right now.
4 free agents the NY Giants shouldn’t even bother trying to re-sign
With $44+ million in cap space, there is a good chance Joe Schoen won't be able to bring everyone back and these four guys shouldn't return.