Saquon immune to draft critics
No one disputes the greatness of Saquon Barkley, a player who actually more than lived up to what sounded like overzealous hype one year ago. The Giants did not take him with the No. 2 pick in the 2018 draft as much as they anointed him, and he responded with a breathtaking debut season.
Barkley was nearly flawless, on the field and off it, and the only critique anyone could muster is: he is not a quarterback. A year later, the Giants head into the draft hoping to find a successor to Eli Manning, and there is healthy debate, despite Barkley’s production, the franchise would be better off long term had it taken Sam Darnold, or perhaps Josh Allen or Josh Rosen — the quarterbacks available to the Giants when they selected a running back whom general manager Dave Gettleman said was “touched by the hand of God.’’
Barkley rushed for 1,307 yards, caught 91 passes for 721 yards and scored a total of 15 touchdowns, but cannot escape the murmurs that the Giants should have gone quarterback.
“Yes, I understand that,’’ Barkley said Thursday. “I don’t care for their opinions or anything. I can’t change those opinions. Not being cocky or anything, but if a rookie of the year doesn’t sway that mindset, then I don’t know what will.
“My mindset is to continue to prove to the people in this locker room and in this building that they got the right guy. Not only the right guy because I can break off an 80-yard touchdown, because there are a lot of people in the league that can do that, but as a guy that can buy in and take that leadership role. I believe that I have been able to show that so far, and I have been able to take that to a whole different level.’’
Barkley said he wonders why there is so much uproar about finding a new quarterback, with Eli Manning still in the building.
“I think he can do it all,’’ Barkley said. “A big thing for me is that film doesn’t lie. It doesn’t lie. If you go back and watch the second half of the year, when we all started playing at a high level as a team, you started seeing how he played, how I played, how the defense played and the offensive line played. That’s what it is.’’
The Giants were so attracted to Barkley not only for his physical ability but also his mental makeup. They see him as special, in every way, and want him to emerge as the face of their franchise — a designation they were uneasy to champion for Odell Beckham Jr., hence the trade to the Browns.
“To see him go, it sucks,’’ Barkley said. “It is sad to see people go, but we have to keep it moving.’’
A year ago, Barkley, then 21, was the youngest player on the roster and he figured he and Beckham, then 25, would be a deadly duo, devastating defenses for years to come. Their football partnership lasted one season.
“I did not need the Odell trade to open my eyes up to the business,’’ Barkley said. “Your first week coming to the NFL, all over the league, guys are getting cut and moved around. ... It does not change anything with our friendship. He is in Cleveland and I am in New York. We are one phone call away and not that many miles away.’’