The Eagles’ signing of Saquon Barkley to a big contract must have caught the Giants off guard

On February 16, New York Giants general manager Joe Schoen called a meeting in his office to make a decision about changing the franchise.

The decision-makers in the room were assistant general manager Brandon Brown, director of player personnel Tim McDonnell, director of professional scouting Chris Rossetti, assistant director of player personnel Dennis Hickey, senior vice president of football operations and strategy Kevin Abrams, director of football operations Ed Triggs and director of football administration Charles Tisch.

Needless to say, the meeting was not taken lightly. The Giants’ decision-makers were gathered to determine the future of their decisive element, running back Saquon Barkley.

HBO’s “Hard Knocks” series will follow the Giants through the offseason. Tuesday night’s premiere episode offered a glimpse of Schoen’s encounter.

Schoen, who has made it clear he is tired of contract negotiations with Barkley, wanted to allow the star halfback to test the open market and consider matching his best offer. The highlight of the meeting — and perhaps the episode — was Rossetti’s correct assessment of Barkley’s value and his questioning of the team’s general manager’s views.

“Are we sure that no one will pay him such a sum?” Rossetti asked.

“Who do you think would be willing to sign a running back for that amount of money?” Schoen replied.

“Anyone who has money to spend,” Rossetti said.

“There are a lot of running backs in free agency,” Schoen countered.

The free agency running back class was led by Josh Jacobs, Derrick Henry, Tony Pollard, D’Andre Swift, Austin Ekeler and Aaron Jones, among others. Schoen seemed to believe the large offer would bring the market down. Rossetti, however, didn’t believe those players were Barkley’s match.

“But are there things that could make a difference after seeing this film?” Rossetti retorted.

At one point, Schoen suggested the idea of ​​a trade-and-tag situation in which the Giants would use the franchise tag designation on the running back for the second straight season before trading him to another team, but dismissed it as unrealistic.

At a free agency meeting later in the offseason, Rossetti continued to pound the table for Barkley.

“Put him behind a Detroit Lions offensive line, put him behind a Philadelphia Eagles offensive line, there might be more value to another team that would be willing to give up a pick or an asset to get him,” Rossetti said, h/t Sporting News.

Rossetti was right, of course. The Philadelphia Eagles signed running back Saquon Barkley to a three-year, $37.7 million contract with an average annual salary of $12.5 million.

Barkley was destined for a fairytale career in New York. A Bronx native, he was drafted by his hometown team. Off the field, he was a two-time Walter Payton Man of the Year for his community service and a five-time team captain for his locker room leadership. On the field, he ran with a style reminiscent of Barry Sanders and made his presence felt every time he touched the ball. Barkley set a rookie record with 91 receptions and had seven games with 100-plus yards rushing, earning him the NFL’s Offensive Rookie of the Year honors in 2018.

But the NFL is not a game of fairy tales. Schoen believed in centering the offense around quarterback Daniel Jones rather than Barkley.

“You’re paying (Jones) $40 million,” Schoen said. “That’s not to give the ball to a running back who’s making $12 million.”

The third-year GM seemed more focused on market value and trends than on team structure. After all, the Giants’ offense was at its best when it got the ball to its running back — and it was Schoen’s fault he had a quarterback with a $40 million salary to begin with.

In 2022, Barkley was the key cog in an offense that led the Giants to a playoff berth in 2022. Yet Schoen rewarded Jones with a controversial four-year, $160 million contract and chose to place the franchise tag on Barkley instead. Even Giants players disagreed with the decision — it was clear that Barkley, not Jones, was the reason for New York’s success.