Picture Credit: Twitter
Saquon Barkley is part of an ongoing contractual saga with the New York Giants since the off season. He was franchise tagged and this meant that Barkley was left without a contract extension, which made the running back furious. With his social media move, he wants to send a clear message to the Giants.
Previously, Barkley’s bio said that he was the New York Giants’ running back, but this has been removed completely and now only states his name.
The running back has been vocal about his dispute online, claiming he deserves to be one of the best paid running backs in the NFL. He wanted to equal the salary of Chris McCaffrey, who plays running back for the 49ers. His new bio not only changes his profile pic, which used to show him in Giants attire, but also removed any and all mention of the New York based franchise.
Barkley says he holds the cards Speaking to the ‘Money Matters’ podcast, Barkley made it clear that he was the one with the power in this dispute and not the Giants. The 26-year-old said, “My leverage is I could say, 'F-k you' to the Giants, I could say, 'F-k you’ to my teammates. You want me to show you my worth? You want me to show you how valuable I am to the team? I won't show up. I won't play a down. And that's a play I could use.”
This might not be as clear cut as Barkley seems to think. Running backs in the NFL rarely command massive contracts anymore, with teams preferring to spend less on rookies that have room to grow rather than cash out big on an experienced player. Most teams now recognise that an elite running back is not necessary to win a championship, and a running back for the Super Bowl winning team hasn't been among the ten highest paid players of the year for the last ten years since the Seahawks won in 2013.
Since the franchise tag has been applied, Barkley now has to choose between sitting out the season or playing under his existing USD 10 million contract.
