Should Giants avoid extending Saquon Barkley’s contract?
The New York Giants have a lot on their plate this offseason, including the possibility of extending the contract of star running back Saquon Barkley. But is this a 2021 decision or one that can wait for after this season?
The answer is B. The Giants have Barkley under contact for this season and when they excise his fifth-year option this spring, they’ll have him through the 2022 season.
There is no rush to throw a king’s ransom at Barkley right now, especially at a time when the Giants are in a bit of a salary cap crunch. Currently, they are a sliver over the cap and have major decisions to make on players such as Leonard Williams and Dalvin Tomlinson.
The Giants have already tipped their hand on Barkley’s future with the team. They want him in Blue for the long haul.
“I’m still happy that we have him,” CEO John Mara said in January. “I think, knowing him, he’s going to come back stronger than ever and be a big part of this team next year. In terms of what the timetable is, it’s hard to predict that right now. I know our medical people are very pleased with the progress he’s made. I certainly expect him to be a Giant for a very long time.”
It doesn’t make sense mainly because Barkley, after bursting onto the scene as a rookie in 2018, has missed the equivalent of 18 games due to injury and was not 100 percent in the first five games after retuning from a high ankle sprain in 2019. All told, Barkley’s only been healthy for about eight of the Giants’ last 32 games.
They need more proof of life before they commit to any long-term, blockbuster deal. In fact, they should seriously consider drafting a running back in the mid-to-late rounds of the upcoming NFL draft.
Barkley’s cap hit for 2021 is $10.095 million and his fifth-year option price is still to be determined as the league has changed the formula beginning with the 2018 draft class. It is likely to be in the neighborhood of $10-12 million or, the value of a transition tag.
That is as far as they should go right now with Barkley. He hasn’t really moved the needle for them in the standings and probably won’t in the future as great as he can be.
Kristopher Knox of Bleacher Report added a similar perspective to ours.
“Barkley also happens to be eligible for a contract extension this offseason, but that’s something the Giants should look to avoid,” Knox wrote in recent piece outlining each NFL team’s most crucial offseason decision. “The Panthers granted Christian McCaffrey an extension after his third season, and the former Stanford star went on to miss 13 games in 2020.
“Barkley now has an extensive injury history, which McCaffrey did not during his first three years. He’s on a manageable rookie contract, and the Giants should keep it that way until they better know what he can be over the long term.”
Bingo. It’s a wait and see game for Barkley. If he returns to form, lock him up. If not, let him play out his rookie contract and take things from there.
