Soon enough, we'll find out what the NY Giants decide to do with star running back Saquon Barkley. It's unknown if he and Joe Schoen will be able to come to terms on a contract extension or not, but there's also the possibility that the Giants will place the franchise tag on him again.
Earlier in the week, it looked like the decision had already been made, with a report stating the G-Men weren't expected to go the tag route. However, ESPN's Jordan Raanan has cleared things up, saying no decision has been made as of yet:
This isn’t being portrayed correctly. I didn’t report anything.
— Jordan Raanan (@JordanRaanan) February 7, 2024
I was asked my opinion during a radio spot and speculated based on what I’ve seen and heard publicly. @uSTADIUM @_MLFootball https://t.co/ELwWRQju4m
What will the NY Giants end up doing with running back Saquon Barkley?
From Feb. 20 to March 5, the window is open for teams to place their star players on the franchise tag. The deadline will arrive at 4 p.m. ET on March 5. Remember what happened last year? The Giants waited until the last second to sign Daniel Jones to his $160 million contract extension.
As soon as that happened, the breaking news of Barkley being placed on the tag dropped right after. Saquon wasn't happy with that move and it's easy to see why. Already this offseason, Barkley sent quite the message to Schoen, saying that if the GM plans to tag him, he needs to do it early on and not make him sit and wait on things.
If Barkley is allowed to hit free agency, you better believe several teams will be lining up to try and talk to his agent. Schoen said previously that he will speak with Barkley's reps at the NFL Combine, which is set to start at the end of the month. It really feels like things could go either way here.
Barkley, who posted 962 rushing yards and six touchdowns in 2023, is hoping to get paid like one of the top running backs in the game. The Giants have been hesitant to give him the kind of money he's looking for. Only time will tell if an extension is signed, but we also can't rule out the franchise tag being in play as well.