ESPN: Teams Feel Giants Tactics with Saquon Barkley a Reaction to 'Sagging' RB Market

The running back has been devalued in today's NFL, and teams around the league reportedly feel that is why the New York Giants don't have a formal long-term offer on the table for Saquon Barkley after placing the non-exclusive franchise tag on him this offseason.

ESPN's Jeremy Fowler discussed the situation during an appearance on SportsCenter:

"They definitely have high interest in bringing him back either on the tag or a long-term deal. But GM Joe Schoen said at the Owners Meetings this week that they had pulled the offer they made to Saquon before they placed the franchise tag on him. Now, I talked to some teams who believe that's a reaction to the sagging running back market. All of the top free agents, (David Montgomery, Miles Sanders) struggled to get those big-money deals. So that could affect things a little bit if Barkley had a deal of say $12 or $13 million per year on the table, maybe that's not there anymore. But he's an elite player. They want to set a tone in the locker room that they want to keep their top guys. So, they could push to find a sweet spot in the next few months of negotiation."

Schoen previously explained the team's approach with the Penn State product and said, per ESPN's Dan Graziano, "There's no outstanding offer right now. Once we put the franchise tag on him, we stepped back. We knew throughout the negotiation that there was going to be a time where, if we couldn't come to an agreement, we were going to go to the franchise tag, and that's what we did."

Graziano also noted Giants owner John Mara pointed to a running back market that "is what it is right now" when discussing the team's desire to keep Barkley, underscoring Fowler's latest comments.

Playmakers at the position such as the Las Vegas Raiders' Josh Jacobs and the Dallas Cowboys' Tony Pollard were also franchise tagged this offseason, so Barkley isn't the only one facing this situation.

Yet he is a key part of a Giants team that has momentum after a playoff appearance in 2022.

He posted 1,312 rushing yards, 338 receiving yards and 10 touchdowns while staying healthy this past season and will look to build on that in 2023. If he does, there may be a longer deal waiting even if it is a difficult market to navigate for the position.