Why the New York Giants Held Saquon Barkley Out of Drills Against Browns

After getting into a few team drills last week, Giants running back Saquon Barkley was held out of team drills against the Browns. Here's why.
Why the New York Giants Held Saquon Barkley Out of Drills Against Browns
Why the New York Giants Held Saquon Barkley Out of Drills Against Browns /

Last week, Giants running back Saquon Barkley caused a few eyebrows to be raised when he appeared to have snuck into a seven-on-seven drill during a Giants training camp practice. 

“He didn’t sneak in,” head coach Joe Judge said Thursday before his team took the field for the first of two joint practices against the Cleveland Browns in Berea, Ohio. 

“Everything we’re doing for him is very scripted for him. We’re very specific about who he’s working against on our team to make sure we’re really controlling the reps.”

To that end, Judge and the Giants decided to hold Barkley out of any team reps against the Browns Thursday as the running back continues to engage in various drills to advance his ramp-up ahead of the regular season. 

And Judge also admitted that had the Giants been practicing back in East Rutherford against each other instead of with the Browns, Barkley might have had a little more work to do in the team drills, similar to what he did last week.

But Judge and the Giants, who have made it a point not to rush Barkley back from a torn ACL and subsequent surgery, are sticking to the plan of letting Barkley get up to speed on his own pace and own terms.

That plan has thus far yielded positive results as the running back hasn’t had any known setbacks or had his work from the previous day dialed back.

“We’re going to limit the contact at this point,” Judge said. “He’s definitely advancing in his rehab. We’re going to keep on pushing him as far as we can. 

“Going against another team in competitive drills, we don’t think that’s the smartest avenue for any of our players coming off of injury right now, so we’re going to be careful with Saquon, but he is progressing in his rehab.”


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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.