Giants Country

How Has New York Giants' Ground Game Really Been Without Saquon Barkley?

Let's line up the data and find out.

Patricia Traina

Philadelphia Eagles running back Saquon Barkley
Philadelphia Eagles running back Saquon Barkley / Geoff Burke-Imagn Images
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As Philadelphia Eagles running back Saquon Barkley, formerly of the New York Giants, rushes his way toward breaking Eric Dickerson’s single-season rushing yardage record (2,105 yards) set in 1984, the displeasure among Giants fans over general manager Joe Schoen’s decision not even to make an offer to Barkley this past offseason.

But as has been hotly debated before and which still seems to be the case, even if the Giants had brought Barkley back, there were questions about whether he could have accomplished with the Giants what he has accomplished this season with the Eagles given the stark differences in both teams’ offensive lines.

Per Pro Football Focus, the Eagles' offensive line currently ranks first in the league, while the Giants' injury-stricken offensive line ranks 29th. Schoen, in choosing to let Barkley walk, spent the money to upgrade the offensive line.

But thanks to injuries, the line that the team started the first six games of the season with, and which had looked far better than the historically bad versions of 2023, the Giants are now down to having just two starters (Jermaine Eluemunor and Greg Van Roten) set to play in Sunday’s Week 17 regular-season home finale against the Indianapolis Colts, with neither of those two projected to play the position they played in those first six games of the season.

That aside, the Giants’ 2024 rushing game without Barkley has been on par or better than the 2023 version with him. According to Pro Football Network, the Giants’ ground game is either on par or slightly better in some categories this year without Barkley than it was a year ago with Barkley. 

Stat Category

2023 (with Barkley)

2024 (without Barkley)

Yards Per Carry

4.1

4.3

Rushing TDs

10

12

1st Downs Per Rush

21.4%

25.7%

Success Rate

38.9%

42.3%

Yds Before Contact/Rush

1.51

1.53

Yds After Contact/Rush

2.62

2.81

And here, per data from Pro Football Focus, is how the Giants have done in the passing game (running backs only) with and without Barkley.

Stat Category

2023 (with Barkley)

2024 (without Barkley)

Targets

100

77

Receptions

77

62

Yards

463

456

Yards/Rec

6.01

7.35

Receiving TDs

4

1

YAC

466

538

Drop

9

8

Of course, as with anything, stats don’t tell the complete story. In 2023, Barkley missed three games due to an ankle injury, which, had he played, might have improved the overall 2023 numbers to bring them on par with what the Giants have done in 2024 so far.

While Barkley is undoubtedly still a generational talent who is proving to his doubters that he is still in his prime years, Schoen's decision to let Barkley leave hasn’t hurt the Giants as much from a production perspective based on the numbers.

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Patricia Traina
PATRICIA TRAINA

Patricia Traina has covered the New York Giants for 30+ seasons, and her work has appeared in multiple media outlets, including The Athletic, Forbes, Bleacher Report, and the Sports Illustrated media group. As a credentialed New York Giants press corps member, Patricia has also covered five Super Bowls (three featuring the Giants), the annual NFL draft, and the NFL Scouting Combine. She is the author of The Big 50: The Men and Moments that Made the New York Giants. In addition to her work with New York Giants On SI, Patricia hosts the Locked On Giants podcast. Patricia is also a member of the Pro Football Writers of America and the Football Writers Association of America.

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