Giants' Saquon Barkley Placed on Reserve/COVID-19 List

The New York Giants did not have running back Saquon Barkley available for Wednesday's practice.

Ian Rapoport of NFL Network noted the NFC East team placed Barkley and defensive back Xavier McKinney on the reserve/COVID-19 list.

Adam Schefter of ESPN added context to the situation and said Tuesday's tests returned 13 positives for the Giants. However, running backs coach Burton Burns was the only positive when they were all retested Wednesday.

Yet Barkley, McKinney and guard Matt Skura missed Wednesday's practice because of protocols.

Barkley has not played since an Oct. 10 loss to the Dallas Cowboys because of an ankle injury. He was also limited to two games last season because he tore his ACL.

The Penn State product has 195 rushing yards, 130 receiving yards and three total touchdowns in five games this year. The Giants are just 2-6 and could use his return to the backfield.

It wasn't long ago that Barkley ran for more than 1,000 yards in back-to-back seasons to start his career in 2018 and 2019.

Nick Shook of NFL.com noted that the running back will need to produce two negative tests and be asymptomatic to be eligible to play in Sunday's game against the Las Vegas Raiders because he is vaccinated.

While he may have been trending toward a potential return from the ankle injury, the Giants also have a bye in Week 10 prior to a Week 11 showdown with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

That could give Barkley more time to recover for the season's stretch run.