Jaylon Smith: Saquon Barkley is heartbeat of the Giants

From the moment he was given the franchise tag, many have wondered if running back Saquon Barkley would eventually come to an agreement with the New York Giants on a long-term agreement.

While the debate continues to rage over running back value and how much money should be invested into the position, it’s hard to ignore what Barkley means to the Giants’ offense.

Former Giants linebacker and current free agent, Jaylon Smith, was a guest on Good Morning Football and sang Barkley’s praises with contract talks ongoing.

“He’s the heartbeat. He’s the engine. He’s the guy that you want in your foxhole,” Smith said. “Without Saquon, we don’t make the playoff last year. He’s a huge piece to that franchise and he cares. He’s a guy that cares. He’s the most competitive person, arguably, that I’ve ever met. I’m talking locker room, I’m talking ping pong, badminton, pushup competition, whatever. He’s trying to get after it and he’s going to talk stuff, too, when he wins.”

There’s no ignoring the impact Barkley has on the Giants’ offense given the magnitude of how much the offense runs around him. It’s hard to imagine Mike Kafka’s offense being successful without Barkley.

Given the lacking weapons outside of Barkley, it’s not that bold a statement to say Big Blue would’ve missed the playoffs without their star running back.

Smith spent parts of each of the past two with Big Blue and admired Barkley from the sideline. Additionally, Smith spent the first few seasons of Barkley’s career as an NFC East rival with the Dallas Cowboys, so he’s seen firsthand what the superstar is capable of.

Barkley was finally able to stay on the field last year and strung together his best performance since his rookie campaign.

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Story originally appeared on Giants Wire