'I Could Say 'F*** You to Giants!' Cowboys Foe Saquon's Contract Threat
FRISCO - The New York Giants and superstar running back Saquon Barkley failed to come to terms on a contract extension by Monday's deadline. That means Barkley's best-case for 2023 is to make $10 million via the franchise tag. It means he continues to consider sitting out the start of training camp - a protest that could extend through Week 1, when the Dallas Cowboys are slated to play at New York ...
And it means Barkley is now moved to use some salty language to explain his position.
“My leverage is I could say, ‘F*** you’ to the Giants, I could say, ‘F*** you to my teammates,’” Barkley said on an episode of “The Money Matters,” released Monday on YouTube.
The top NFL story of the moment is "the devaluation of the running back,'' with assorted star backs working to bond together to protest the fact that a highly-paid back now makes that $10 mil ... while a highly-paid receiver can make three times that.
Does sitting out camp and even games give Barkley leverage? Barkley is the most important and best player on his team; the Giants, in terms of talent and emotion, would suddenly be less likely to repeat as a playoff qualifier without him ... especially as they play in the NFC East, where the Philadelphia Eagles join the Cowboys as perceived powerhouses.
The Raiders' Josh Jacobs is in the same position. Dallas' Tony Pollard, however, signed his tag offer, so even though he didn't get contract extension by Monday's deadline for franchise tagged players, the Cowboys are not aware of an issue there. (Now, an issue with Zack Martin's contract? That's another story.)
Pollard, we've speculated, might be in his final year with the Cowboys. And meanwhile, Barkley, regarding that aforementioned leverage?
“‘You want me to show you my worth?'' Barkley said. "You want me to show you how valuable I am to the team? I won’t show up. I won’t play a down.' And that’s a play I could use.”
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