When Saquon Barkley declared for the 2018 NFL Draft out of Penn State, many analysts declared he possessed generational talent, and he’s more than lived up to the hype so far.
On Thursday, New York Giants head coach Pat Shurmur gushed over Barkley for a completely different reason. Rather than highlight his physical abilities, which are remarkable, Shurmur pointed to what he says is a “generational spirit” dwelling inside the young man.
“The more you are around Saquon, you realize he has a generational spirit. It shows up on gameday, in the locker room and behind the scenes,” Shurmur said, per Giants beat writer John Schmeelk.
Shumur’s comment was followed by third-year tight end Evan Engram, who said, “Saquon just came in as a natural leader. You saw he was a great athlete but what stuck out to me was his natural leadership.”
That’s some high praise about a young man set to enter just his second NFL season.