Running back Saquon Barkley is leaving the Big Apple and heading over the Delaware River to the Philadelphia Eagles. The NFC East rivalry between the New York Giants and Eagles has grown more from this effective roster change.
After the Giants and Barkley could not agree before the start of NFL Free Agency on March 11, any team hoping to land a new star running back could make a deal with him. On March 13, Barkley had agreed to a three-year Eagles contract worth $37.75 million, giving him the fourth-highest running back contract in the league.
The league is now investigating if the Eagles violated the Free Agency rules and were tampering with Saquon to make a deal. According to an ESPN article from March 14, Pennsylvania State University coach James Franklin mentioned that Eagles General Manager Howie Roseman and Saquon Barkley started negotiations before they were supposed to. Whether or not there will be consequences for tampering is still up in the air, but there is a possibility that the Eagles could lose their first-round draft pick in the 2024 NFL Draft.
Mixed emotions are running through Giants fans’ heads, but most are angry over where Barkley has landed and how he left the team. Very few superfans take the Eagles-Giants rivalry lightly, so they’re not giving Barkley the benefit of the doubt of leaving to make more money. Former Giant Tiki Barber made a comment about Barkley on WFAN on Monday, March 11.
“He’s dead to us now,” Barber said. “He’s dead to us. You’re dead to us, Saquon. Good luck.”
Once Barkley heard about Barber’s reaction, he struck back on X. But Giants fans are also frustrated with how Barkley handled his departure and they feel they are missing a proper goodbye and thank you. Saquon also feels that he did not leave in the best fashion which he mentioned in an Eagles press conference on Thursday.
Eagles fans are thrilled to add another weapon to their offense, especially one from their NFC East rival. With quarterback Jalen Hurts and, wide receivers AJ Brown and DeVonta Smith alongside Barkley, the Eagles are closer to bringing home the Vince Lombardi Trophy this upcoming season.
Sending Barkley to a division rival will only strengthen the rivalry, and fans anticipate that Barkley’s return to Metlife in the regular season will be special. The New York Giants landed running back Devin Singletary as a tentative replacement. Until then, teams will continue building their rosters and filling in the gaps using Free Agency and the NFL Draft starting Thursday, April 25.
Photo Credit: “Saquon Barkley” by KA Sports Photos is licensed under (CC BY-SA 2.0)
