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Saquon Barkley has finally come to an agreement with the New York Giants.
The running back will sign a one-year deal worth up to $11 million. According to ESPN, it also includes a $2 million signing bonus and $909,000 in incentives.
Barkley will cash in that extra money if he’s able to notch 1,350 rushing yards, 11 touchdowns, 65 receptions, and the hardest of the requirements: to make the playoffs.
Disappointingly, the new deal doesn’t have a “no franchise tag” clause, which means we could be in the same situation next off-season, with Barkley fighting for more money when March 2024 rolls around.
However, this scenario is better than Barkley sitting out, which he contemplated during a recent appearance on The Money Matters podcast.
“My leverage is I could say, ‘F-ck you’ to the Giants, I could say, ‘F-ck you’ to my teammates,” he told host Jack Mallers. “And be like, ‘You want me to show you my worth? You want me to show you how valuable I am to the team? I won’t show up. I won’t play a down.’ And that’s a play I could use.”
He admitted to thinking about sitting on the bench, but it wasn’t something he ultimately wanted to do despite not being happy with the offered contract.
The New York Giants offered him a three-year, $33 million contract with around $22 million guaranteed. But Barkley thinks he was lowballed after pesky leg injuries like high ankle sprains, a torn ACL that ended his 2020 season after just two games, and an MCL strain.
“The number they offered, they thought I might jump at because of my injury history,” Barkley added. “I was like, I’d rather bet on myself.”
ESPN’s Jordan Raanan reports that Barkley’s already at training camp, as his Giants look to make it out of the NFC East against the Philadelphia Eagles and Dallas Cowboys.
Here’s how Twitter reacted to the contract drama:
