In a game with as many moving pieces as football, you’re bound to make the wrong choice from time to time. However, some decisions should be a bit more obvious than others.
Advertisement
As the New York Giants continue to grapple with the fact that they let one of the best players in NFL history walk right out of their front door, for free no less, the football world continues to give them their deserved credit for the breakup. Much to the chagrin of Joe Schoen, Saquon Barkley was the one to benefit most from the Giants’ blunder.
A record-breaking 2024 rushing campaign was capped off by Barkley delivering a Super Bowl title to his former team’s divisional rival, the Philadelphia Eagles. Having rubbed his fair share of salt in New York’s wound, Barkley will now prepare to duplicate his newfound success while leaving the trash talk to fans and media pundits alike.
Proving not to be above it, Julian Edelman and Rob Gronkowski proudly added onto the dogpile during the most recent episode of their Dudes on Dudes podcast. Speaking to how deserving Barkley is of his success, the former wide receiver couldn’t help but to harp on the massive loss of talent for the Giants.
“You always thought he would be a Giant for the rest of his life, and boy, was that one giant loss. To see him go out and do what he’s doing this year with a really good football team, this is what you want for a guy like Saquon Barkley, because he’s just a good ass dude.”
Believing that both the Giants’ owner and general manager are the ones who deserve the brunt of the blame, Gronkowski insisted that the separation was completely avoidable. While he was willing to spare the head coach, Brian Daboll, of criticism, the future hall-of-fame tight end had little sympathy for the front office.
In citing the infamous contract negotiations that ultimately stalled out between the two parties, Gronkowski suggested that Barkley is still being underpaid. Believing that hindsight is indeed 20/20, the New England legend claims that the Giants would have simply been better off had they forked over a couple of extra dollars, apart from the reported $13 million per year deal they last offered him.
Only $19.5 million out of that money was guaranteed for Barkley. Barkley went out to be a free agent and that was when the Eagles came up with an offer in which he was guaranteed $26 million in a 3-year, $37.5 million contract.
“Sir, you could have easily stepped in and offered about two or three million dollars more, just to make sure that you keep Saquon Barkley on the New York Giants. This is my problem, he left because there was an argument over like $500,000 or $1 million.
“What is he getting paid, $12 million? Well, I can tell you this, he’s still underpaid by at least $10 million dollars. And there’s an argument about not paying him over $1 million? You’ve got to really put it into perspective.”
Thanks to a recent contract extension, Barkley is now earning a grand total of $20,600,000 per year, making him the highest-paid running back in the NFL today. Although that is no match to his other teammates such as AJ Brown ($32,000,000 per year) and Jalen Hurts ($51,000,000 per year).
While no team may ever be able to pay Barkley his true value, it’s likely that he’s content with being the highest salary earner in his position.
Julian Edelman recalls attending the Met Gala with Saquon Barkley
Upon Gronkowski gushing over the sheer mass and power that is contained in Barkley’s quadriceps, his former teammate and co-host couldn’t help but to recall the time in which he got a perfect glimpse at Barkley’s legs. In an attempt to make a fashion statement at the Met Gala, Barkley and a few of his companions opted for an alternative choice in menswear. The view proved to be too much for Edelman.
“I went to the Met Gala and it was, me, him, and OBJ, we were all hanging out because we were the athletes there. We had a great time but I saw that he was wearing a skirt. I saw those g*d damned quads in that and I was like holy sh*t! I had nightmares… I saw the whole thing, in a kilt.”
Edelman also noted that when he and Odell Beckham Jr. attempted to sneak off for a McDonald’s run, the star running back, very politely, informed him that he did not eat at fast food restaurants. Given the sheer pedigree of Barkley’s physique, that’s not hard to believe.
The face of the running back position now has his sights set on the upcoming 2025 regular season, where he will attempt to help the Eagles defend their world title. Having just produced the most rushing yards in a single season when accounting for playoffs, fans will have to wait before finding out if his 27-year-old frame can withstand the workload that Philadelphia continues to bestow upon him.
