The more we watch Hard Knocks, the more we can tell that NY Giants general manager Joe Schoen wasn't happy with how things previously went down with Saquon Barkley. While NY let Barkley test the free agent market, we can't forget about the fact that they previously tried to get things done with No. 26.
Prior to last season, Schoen reportedly put multiple offers on the table for Barkley to consider, but none were in the region he was looking for. Schoen had an emotional talk with Barkley to let him know he wasn't going to franchise tag him back in March, but a conversation with Giants Senior Director of Football Communications Dion Dargin also showed that Schoen wasn't pleased with things as a whole went down with his star RB:
This is a great behind-the-scenes look at how GMs prepare for press conferences, anticipating all the potential questions and how they want their answers to sound.
— Ari Meirov (@MySportsUpdate) July 10, 2024
A peek behind the curtain...pic.twitter.com/nj61eQrhIm
Joe Schoen appeared quite frustrated with how talks went with Saquon Barkley
"I understand he doesn't want to be franchised (tagged). I wanted to give him a lot of money a year ago and he didn't want that. There's nothing I can do about that. "Joe Schoen
Those are the words of a man who still seems a bit upset that nothing was able to get done long term. The Giants ended up placing the non-exclusive franchise tag on Barkley for the 2023 campaign, something the Pro Bowl RB was not happy about.
He ended up signing a revised tag deal, which provided more money in potential incentives. This offseason, Schoen claimed the franchise tag was still on the table for Barkley, but as we all know, the Giants decided to go in a different direction.
They let Barkley see what else was out there in free agency, with the Eagles giving him a three-year deal worth up to $37.75 million. The Giants were never going to give him that kind of dough. NY invested money in other positions of need. In the end, things appear to have worked out for both sides, though people are still going to lose sleep over Barkley leaving East Rutherford for Philly.