Saquon Barkley, New York Giants fail to reach contract extension agreement

We’ve got a tricky situation in New York heading into the 2023 NFL season. According to a report from ESPN’s Adam Schefter, the Giants and running back Saquon Barkley failed to reach a contract extension agreement before the deadline.

The Giants placed a franchise tag on Barkley but the running back hoped to reach a contract agreement with the franchise. Now that it hasn’t happened, NFL insider Jordan Schultz is reporting that Barkley will not report to training camp.

RB Saquon Barkley and the Giants are not expected to reach agreement on a long-term extension before today’s 4 pm ET deadline for franchise players, per sources. pic.twitter.com/tamBrfnPJ1

— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) July 17, 2023

Barkley did not sign his tender. Since he did not sign, he cannot be fined for missing training camp. However, should he miss games this season, the running back will face fines.

When the deadline passed, Barkley didn’t seem too happy, tweeting, “It is what it is.”

It’s been reported by ESPN’s Dianna Russini that there’s a good chance Barkley skips New York’s Week 1 game against the Dallas Cowboys.

“Saquon Barkley has made it clear the franchise tag is undesirable,” Russini said. “I’m told his availability for Week 1 against the Dallas Cowboys will be in serious question if he does not get a long-term deal from the Giants.”

There is also the possibility that Barkley moves forward with a season-long holdout. It’s something he considered prior to the deadline.

“I think that’s a conversation,” Barkley said of a season-long holdout, 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?”

New York Giants reportedly made low offer to Saquon Barkley

While the Giants reportedly made an effort to extend Barkley, the offer was nowhere near what the running back wanted.

The New York Post reported that the Giants offered Barkley a deal that included $19.5 million in guaranteed money. However, that figure was too low, keeping the two sides pretty far apart in negotiations.

“As one independent agent said about that $19M number, ‘No deal to be done that low,’” The Post reporter Ryan Dunleavy wrote.

Last season for the Giants, Barkley had 1,312 rushing yards and an additional 338 receiving yards. He accounted for 10 touchdown, all of those coming on the ground.