Saquon Barkley comments on potential season-long holdout

New York Giants running back Saquon Barkley has still not signed his franchise tag, which means he won’t be part of the team’s mandatory minicamp this week. As Barkley has no intentions of signing the one-year deal for $10.09 million, the Giants are facing the possibility of playing without him all season long.

The Giants opted to place the tag on their former No. 2 overall pick in early March. Barkley and the team still have until July 17 to work out a long-term deal, but if they don’t the running back says a season-long holdout is something he may consider.

“I think that’s a conversation,” Barkley said, via NFL.com. “Like you said, that’s a card I could play. That comes up in conversation if something don’t get done by July 17. … We got a little bit of time in between there. When that date comes up, then I’ll have to sit down with my team, sit down with my family and make decisions. See what we’re going to do. What’s the next game plan? What’s the next move?”

Last season for the Giants, Barkley had 1,312 rushing yards and an additional 338 receiving yards. He was on a $7.2 million extension off of his rookie contract, which was for four years, $31.19 million.

As a rookie, he had 1,307 rushing yards, 721 receiving yards and 15 total touchdowns. It earned him Offensive Rookie of the Year for 2018.

At his youth football camp in Jersey City on Sunday, Barkley clapped back at those who believe he is being “greedy.”

Barkley: ‘You got until July 17’

“I’ve been public, I came out public and I’ve been open about it,” Barkley said. “I said, ‘I want to be a Giant for life.’ This is where I want to be, and at the end of the day, it’s all about respect. That’s really what it is.”

By making it clear to the Giants that he wants to sign a long-term deal, he puts pressure on the team to cave in negotiations. However, New York can point to another former running back in the Big Apple, Le’Veon Bell, who held out for a season with the Jets and never returned to form, as a cautionary tale.

“I think when you sit back and you look at it, obviously there is the situation where it happened with Le’Veon, and some people say it didn’t work out for him or whatever,” Barkley said. “I think I would have to sit down and actually go through that whole process and think about that whole process when that situation comes up, if it comes up. For me, it’s like, you got until July 17. They could say what they want. We can say what we want.

“At the end of the day, I only can focus on the little things and I can focus on the moment, and I think I’ve been vocal before to you guys that I’m the type of guy that just lives in the now. Just one day at a time, one day at a time. Now if that day comes up and I have to sit down and have that conversation, then I would sit down and have that conversation. We’ll see what’s the best plan for me to do.”