Saquon Barkley’s brief holdout is over and everybody has something to say about his deal.
The New York Giants and star running back Saquon Barkley agreed to terms on a one-year deal worth up to $11 million, according to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport on Tuesday morning.
Hall of Fame running back O.J. Simpson quickly responded to the news in an almost 5-minute video he posted to Twitter.
Simpson said Barkley’s contract was not perfect, but a simple fix.
“Saquon Barkley signed and I think it was the absolute right thing to do. Even though, I still think he got screwed a little bit. It’s just not fair… Saquon’s got it all. He’s strong as hell … [and] the boy got shimmy. The boy can juke, the boy can make guys miss who break through and are in the backfield … The man… he’s like Barry Sanders sometimes with that strength and he doesn’t get caught.”
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The Giants initially offered Barkley a deal worth $14 million last year, but the way the deal was structured and guaranteed money didn’t meet the running back’s expectations and therefore no deal was completed.
After agreeing to a four-year, $160 million deal with quarterback Daniel Jones in March, the Giants initially placed the $10.1 million franchise tag on Barkley to avoid letting him hit the open market.
The Giants selected Barkley second overall in the 2018 draft out of Penn State, and he rewarded them by after posting back-to-back 1,000-plus-yard rushing seasons in 2018, when he won Offensive Rookie of the Year, and 2019. However, injuries only had him suit up for two games during the 2020 season due to a torn ACL and, after rehabbing that injury, he appeared in just 13 games in 2021 due to an ankle sprain.
He had a great season last year as he rushed for 1,312 yards and 10 touchdowns in 16 games. He was the biggest reason why the team made the playoffs and defeated the Minnesota Vikings in the Wild Card round.
