Saquon Barkley, Josh Jacobs Prepared to Hold Out Without New Deals, per Report

The New York Giants and Las Vegas Raiders, along with their star running backs Saquon Barkley and Josh Jacobs have tough decisions to make.

Still yet without contract extensions, star running backs Saquon Barkley and Josh Jacobs are prepared to sit out portions of training camp until a deal is met, according to Charles Robinson of Yahoo Sports. The deadline to sign the franchise tag is Monday at 4 p.m. ET. 

As of Thursday morning, the specific reason for Jacobs’s contract holdup with the Raiders is unknown. However, Barkley and the Giants are unable to reach a deal because New York is making offers where guaranteed money falls short of the minimum he would make under the next two franchise tags, per Yahoo Sports. 

The franchise tag for 2023 is $10.091 million. If Barkley was tagged again in 2024, his guaranteed money would be at least $12.1 million in 2024. Over the two-year span, that would be a total of $22.2 million.

Barkley’s injury history isn’t helping his case either, but he quieted down any worries surrounding his health in 2022 while tallying 1,650 yards from scrimmage and rushing for 10 touchdowns. Meanwhile, Jacobs is coming off his best season at 25 years old. He led the league in rushing with 1,653 yards on the ground and ran for 12 touchdowns. 

Both tailbacks sitting out would be significant blows to a pair of teams looking to either return to the playoffs or build off a postseason trip from last year.