‘Hard Knocks’ reveals Giants’ final Saquon Barkley contract talks before bolting to Eagles
NY Post
Call this “Saquon Barkley, Endgame.’’
The final steps that led Barkley to depart the Giants after six seasons for greener pastures in Philadelphia was the compelling focus in Episode 3 of “Hard Knocks,’’ aired Tuesday night on HBO.
Tucked into this peek behind the curtain was a resounding message to Giants fans: Joe Schoen, the general manager, makes the final call on football matters, even if that decision rankles his boss, co-owner John Mara.
With NFL free agency beckoning, the episode opens up with Schoen calling Barkley’s agent, Ed Berry, asking, “In order to get Saquon, what would we have to do? There’s no sense going back and forth.’’
Schoen listens and then repeats these numbers: $12.5 million yearly average on a three-year deal and $25 million in guaranteed money.
“If I offered him [those numbers,] he’d be a Giant?’’ Schoen says. “Alright, I’ll give you a call back. This may be above me on Saquon.’’
With the Yankees on an impressive run of mostly correct decisions, there’s some reason to leave them alone and just let the best team in the American League continue to roll. But they did raise serious doubt and leave room for suggestions (and even ridicule) following maybe the most inexplicable decision of this season, or any season.
The Giants have never been 0-2 under Brian Daboll, until now. They were 2-0 and flying high in 2022 and 1-1 after a rousing comeback in Arizona in 2023. So, this represents a low point as far as early-season difficulties for Daboll and the Giants. They had no business beating the Vikings in the opener and no business losing to the Commanders in Week 2. But here they are.
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Harrison Butker kept making a lonely walk to midfield after each quarter Sunday to check on the direction of the wind, which tends to swirl inside Arrowhead Stadium. He did it one last time during the 2-minute warning, when his Chiefs were trailing the Bengals by two and trying to give him a winning field-goal attempt.