New York Giants star running back Saquon Barkley hosted a youth football camp in Jersey City yesterday and provided an update on his contract negotiations afterwards.
“I had a great time: I had so much fun, I had so much fun. Yeah, it always bring back memories to be out here, enjoy quality time with kids, to spend time with them: a lot of those guys look up to me, it’s crazy to say it like that, they look up to me as a role model,” Barkley said during a press briefing at Caven Point Field after the camp concluded.
The camp was hosted by Athletes Making Progress Together, a group connecting professional athletes to their surrounding communities, the Boy and Girls Club in New Jersey, and Barkley’s nonprofit.
After the 150 or so young athletes completed about a two hour camp focused on drilling fundamentals, Barkley also took time to take pictures and give autographs for young fans.
During the media scrum, Barkley said he’s still trying to negotiate a new deal by July 17th. The Giants used the franchise tag on him, though he has not signed it and, as a result, will not attend spring minicamp.
“I think they’re open to talking. I’m open to talking. I think at the end of the day, if you really break it down and look at it as a whole, there is no rush. There is still time on the table to get to July 17. July 17 is not tomorrow. It’s not in a week. That is how I look at it,” he explained.
“Maybe that is the naïve way to look at it, I could be completely wrong. But for me, that’s how I look at it. I could be completely wrong. Hopefully. I trust in the Giants that we could get something done.”
He also didn’t rule out sitting out the season, though indicated he hasn’t given that option much thought as of yet. The former Penn State standout also expressed frustration that leaked news stories had portrayed him as being greedy.
“Me getting tagged, was I upset about it? Nobody wants to get tagged,” Barkley said. “To sit here and say I was frustrated, I was mad, I was upset, what really got me upset was the stories that got leaked out and how misleading they were and how untruthful they were,” Barkley stated.
“I feel it was trying to paint a narrative of me, paint a picture of me that is not even true. Not even close to being the truth.”
He also noted that Raiders RB Josh Jacobs and Cowboys RB Tony Pollard got franchised as well, arguably the top three backs in the league, which he said hurts the market by capping salaries at $10 million.
Barkley led the Giants with 1,312 yards rushing yards, 10 touchdowns, and also tied for the team lead with 57 receptions last year.
