Giants RB Saquon Barkley on Evan Neal's comments: 'Never pick a battle with the fans'

The New York Giants offensive line has been easily one of the worst units in the National Football League. Their unit has drawn plenty of criticism with their play in 2023, allowing 11 sacks in their last outing on Monday Night Football against the Seattle Seahawks. They’ve been historically bad, so it’s not surprising they’ve drawn a firestorm of criticism from fans and media alike. Recently, Giants offensive tackle Evan Neal lashed out at fans, but later apologized. On Thursday afternoon, his teammate star running back Saquon Barkley, offered him some words of wisdom on picking his battles with fans.

“The advice I would give to him, and any other teammate is: Never pick a battle with the fans. You’re never gonna win that one. They’ve been here before us, and they’re gonna be here after us. That’s just the truth,” Barkley said on Thursday.

The best way for any player to quiet their critics is with their play on the field. And even then, even the greatest athletes will always have their critics. That’s just life in the public spotlight.

But Evan Neal and the Giants offensive better find a way to play better and quickly. Otherwise, their quarterback, Daniel Jones, doesn’t stand a chance. He was pummeled for 10 sacks in New York’s blowout loss to the Dallas Cowboys. Then on Monday night earlier this week, he was hammered again for 11 more sacks.

It would be tough for any quarterback in the National Football League to simply survive that kind of beating on a weekly basis. Let alone a full season.

Neal took issue with fans booing the team during the 24-3 Week 4 loss to the Seattle Seahawks Monday. Two days removed from the Giants’ offensive line allowing quarterback Daniel Jones to be sacked 11 times, Neal fired back at fans who showered MetLife Stadium with boos.

“Why would a lion concern himself with the opinion of a sheep?” Neal said Wednesday, via NJ.com. “The person that’s commenting on my performance, what does he do? Flip hot dogs and hamburgers somewhere?”

Evan Neal struggling during sophomore season with Giants

Neal, New York’s first-round selection in the 2022 NFL Draft out of Alabama, has struggled since entering the league. After allowing seven sacks as a rookie, Neal has recorded a 42.5 overall grade through four games in 2023, according to Pro Football Focus.

Neal has become subject to criticism from Giants fans for his play — reminiscent of infamous first-round bust Ereck Flowers. While Neal understands he needs to play better, he’s got no time for “fair-weather” fans.

“Because that just further shows that people are fair-weather,” Neal said. “A lot of fans are bandwagoners. I mean, I get it. They want to see us perform well. And I respect all of that. But no one wants us to perform well more than we do. And how can you say you’re really a fan when we’re out there battling our asses off — and the game wasn’t going well — but the best you can do is boo your home team?

“So how much of a fan are you, really?”

On3’s Nick Geddes also contributed to this article.