Saquon Barkley’s contract dispute with the New York Giants is closing in on a key deadline and the reason for the divide reportedly is different than many NFL observers have assumed.
There was so much positivity surrounding the New York Giants organization over the last six months. The team surprised the NFL world in 2022. Far exceeding expectations under new head coach Brian Daboll by reaching the playoffs and winning their first postseason game in over a decade.
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In the spring, the organization followed that up retaining two of their top stars and also making several other moves to improve the roster. All seemed good in Big Blue Land. Then a dark cloud came over the horizon in the form of Saquon Barkley’s dissatisfaction with his contact situation.
The New York Giants slapped their franchise tag on the two-time Pro Bowler after agreeing to a massive extension with quarterback Daniel Jones. That decision did not sit well with Barkley, who was looking forward to either getting a long-term deal from the team or testing his value in free agency. Now he has neither.
Guaranteed money seems to be at heart of New York Giants-Saquon Barkley dispute
With his franchise tender still not signed, his representation and the team have engaged in contract talks over the last few weeks in the hopes of keeping the Giants’ top offensive player happy. Yet, recent reports claim the two sides have not gotten any closer since he turned down a pair of extension offers in the winter. Various stories have claimed annual money is the big divide between the two sides, however, a new report claims it is not that at all.
On Friday, Yahoo Sports Senior NFL reporter Charles Robinson claimed that guaranteed money over the life of a potential contract is the biggest hurdle currently, and “the Giants continue to pursue a deal with guarantees that fall short of the minimum of what Barkley could lock in under the next two franchise tags.”
Robinson added that in a negotiation like this, an agent would likely make the guaranteed money of consecutive tags the baseline for extension talks. Based on various projections for this year and next, Barkley is likely looking for something in the range of $23.1 million over the next two seasons, which is not an outlandish annual rate when split in two.
Earlier this week, Pro Football Talk reported Barkley was looking for as much as $16 million annually from the New York Giants, however, the 26-year-old vehemently denied that claim.