The New York Giants have a decision to make.
How much is Saquon Barkley worth? The running back will soon be a free agent and the Giants have yet to agree on a deal with him.
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The same is true for Dallas Cowboys running back Ezekiel Elliot, but he may be setting a standard that will lower Barkley’s leverage for more money.
Dallas Morning News’ Michael Gehlkin reports that Elliot wants to stay with the Cowboys and is willing to accept a pay cut in order to achieve that.
Here’s what the money around Elliot means, according to Gehlkin:
He is currently scheduled to earn a $10.9 million salary in 2023. … Theoretically, the Cowboys could release Elliott and avoid paying him the $10.9 million salary for 2023. Doing so with a post-June 1 designation would mean Elliott counts $5.82 million against the 2023 salary cap and $6.04 million in 2024. Again, that route is believed to be counter to the club’s intentions.
Back to New York. Earlier this season, during the Giants’ bye week, general manager Joe Schoen began contract talks with reps for the 25-year-old Barkley. But they didn’t go far. And now we know why, according to FOX Sports’ Ralph Vacchiano.
Barkley was offered around $12M/season during the bye week, per sources, and Schoen said they weren’t close in value. Barkley said (Saturday) he didn’t necessarily want to set the market, though I continue to hear he wants near Christian McCaffrey’s $16M average. Considering the projected franchise tag for RBs is $10.1M, it really didn’t sound like the Giants’ bye week offer to Saquon Barkley is going to increase by much. They have a lot of other spending priorities this off-season.
After Saturday’s 38-7 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles, Barkley said all the right things, expressing his interest in returning to the team.
“I’ve been vocal about how I feel and where I want to be. I wanted to show the Giants that the guy they drafted is still here. Everyone knows I would love to be a Giant for life.”
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During his end-of-season press conference Monday, Schoen also expressed interest in re-signing Barkley:
“We’d like to have all our guys back. But there’s a business side to it and rules we need to operate under as far as the salary cap. He’s a great teammate and I loved getting to know him this season and he’s a guy we’d like to have back. ... Listen, Saquon has done everything we’ve asked him to do and he’s a good football player. As far as positional value, we’ll get into how we want to build this team and allocate our resources. That’s what it comes down to. Again, he’s a good football player. He was durable for this year. He played well and he’s a guy that we’d like to have back.”
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Bridget Hyland may be reached at bhyland@njadvancemedia.com.
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