Tuck says roll with Saquon
JUSTIN Tuck is all in on Saquon Barkley.
The former Giants defensive end praised the Penn State running back, who he said would be a good fit for his former team with the No.2 pick in the draft.
“If I’m just going to come out and say it, I like Barkley,” Tuck said at the Park Hyatt on Tuesday, where he was part of the introduction of the new Alliance of American Football league. “He gives them so many options as a thirddown back who can take a lot of pressure off the O-line and make guys miss but also adding value in the pass game out of the backfield. He’s a New York product, which helps, and I think he’s the most dynamic player in the draft right now.”
The Giants at- tended Penn State’s Pro Day on Tuesday, although Barkley opted not to work out, but speculation still remains on whether they will use the No. 2 pick to select a quarterback to succeed 37-year-old Eli Manning.
Tuck does not subscribe to the theory that the Giants have to take a quarterback.
“As a matter of fact, I think it shouldn’t be (a quarterback),” Tuck said. “But that’s my opinion. The Giants have done a really good job drafting, especially in early rounds, ‘sure things.’ They haven’t been up this high but the last time they had a guy named Eli Manning come across the board, so that worked out pretty well for all guys involved.”
Tuck, who won two Super Bowls with the Giants and Manning, was an outspoken supporter of the quarterback when he was benched in favor of Geno Smith during last year’s 3-13 season.
He continued to show that support again on Tuesday, agreeing that his former quarterback has multiple years left in him and added that every time Manning is doubted, he seems to silence his critics.
“I’m not saying it’s going to happen, but I wouldn’t be surprised,” Tuck said. “Every time something has happened to make people doubt Eli or question his ability, he’s come back and come back in a really big fashion.
“I’ve had the vantage point of seeing how hard he works, his day to day. I know him personally, know how passionate he is about winning and about proving people wrong. That’s his makeup. The more people say he can’t do something or he’s done this and can never do it again, the more I bet on him.”
Tuck, 34, is scheduled to graduate the Wharton School of Business at the University of Pennsylvania in May and on Tuesday stepped into his new role as head of the Board of Advisors for the Alliance of American Football, a new professional league.