Report: Saquon Barkley Avoids Major Injury vs Cardinals

*UPDATE*

NFL insider Adam Schefter tweeted the following:

“Giants’ RB Saquon Barkley is scheduled to undergo an MRI on his right ankle Monday in Arizona to determine the severity of his injury and how much time he could miss, sources tell @JordanRaanan and me. Barkley’s ankle was swollen after the game but the initial thinking, in the words of one source, is that ‘it’s an ordinary (sprain) rather than a high-ankle sprain. Just need to verify (Monday).’ So there’s some optimism and hope going into Monday’s MRI, but more answers await. The Giants play Thursday night in San Francisco.”

The New York Giants just overcame a 20-point halftime deficit to win in thrilling 31-28 fashion over the Arizona Cardinals, who led 28-7 in the third quarter.

After being mostly quiet in the first half, Giants running back Saquon Barkley found his groove and managed to leave his imprint on Arizona's defense, rushing for 63 yards and one score on the ground with six receptions for 29 yards and one receiving touchdown as well.

However, Barkley was injured in the late stages of the game.

Saquon Barkley is injured 😢 pic.twitter.com/ANQ0pYKylf
— alex (@highlightheaven) September 17, 2023

As explained by SI's Jelani Scott:

"With New York driving downfield on second-and-13, Barkley took a handoff up the middle with 1:11 left in regulation and the game tied, 28–28. Barkley’s run was quickly stopped by Cardinals linebacker Krys Barnes, who wrapped Barkley up around his lower body before he barreled into a defensive lineman and awkwardly fell to his right side with his legs still upright."

Barkley was seen walking around on his own but was visibly frustrated, slamming his helmet on the ground. He reportedly had his ankle taped on the sideline.

Saquon walking around under his own power, but he doesn't look happy -- let's hope it's nothing too serious #NYG pic.twitter.com/00xTd3Ktcj
— Alex Wilson (@AlexWilsonESM) September 17, 2023

The Giants have a short week ahead of them, as they play the San Francisco 49ers on Thursday Night Football in Week 3 - which doesn't bode well for Barkley's potential timetable, if it is serious.

It hopefully isn't as Barkley is one of the top runners in the league and is able to make an impact on nearly every touch of the football. The Cardinals held some serious praise for him prior to their matchup:

Cardinals DC Nick Rallis on Barkley earlier this week:

"Saquon's a good player, just so we're all clear. You have to tackle really well. He is unbelievable on contact as far as being able to break free. His balance is phenomenal. And then you really don't want to let him get in an open field with space because he can pull away. The one thing that I think is really unique with Saquon is he'll make some hidden yardage out of what doesn't look to be there, right? You think, 'OK, the way that we're fitting this, the way that we're playing these blocks, this run's gonna go for two [yards]'. He's very patient. He can find those cuts - he can find those cuts late because he's got unreal ability to make drastic cuts and he'll make a four or five-yard gain out of it, and you're like, 'Well now I'm in second-and-five, not second-and-eight. That's really what makes Saquon special in the run game and then they're using him in the pass game very well too, whether it's out of the backfield or split out wide. His ability to run and catch, he's got all of it. So, a really good player."

The Cardinals now drop to 0-2 on the season and will host the Dallas Cowboys in Week 3.