ESPN Reveals Harsh Criticism of Giants RB Saquon Barkley

In a new poll by ESPN, an unnamed NFC Offensive coach doesn't think very highly of Giants running back Saquon Barkley's game.

Author:
Patricia Traina
Publish date:
Jul 12, 2022 3:33 PM EDT

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New York Giants

Perhaps no other member of the New York Giants besides quarterback Daniel Jones is as polarizing of a figure as his teammate, running back Saquon Barkley.

While NFL.com named Barkley as its choice for team MVP ahead of the 2022 season, ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler, in his top 10 players at each position series based on feedback from around the league, paints a much different picture of how Barkley is viewed around the league.

Barkley, who earlier in his career would have been an automatic inclusion on the top-10 list, earned an honorable mention from those who voted on Fowler’s list, with one unnamed veteran NFL coach offering a rather harsh take on what Barkley brings to the table.

"I'm down on him -- he still doesn't know how to play running back enough," the anonymous coach told Fowler of Barkley, who has missed 22 games over the last four seasons due to injury.

"He's a bouncer. He wants every run to be a home run. He's going to have to learn that 4-yard runs in this league are good instead of stopping, cutting it back, and losing 2. And he gets his (backside) kicked in protection."

RELATED: Saquon Barkley: The Good, the Great, and the Ugly

The unnamed coach certainly has some valid points, though to be fair, the lack of a creative scheme, Barkley’s own admission of not having full confidence in his surgically repaired knee, and the inability of his blockers up front all played a factor in a season in which he recorded career lows in rushing attempts (162), rushing yardage (593), rushing touchdowns (2), and first downs (27) struggles in a minimum of 10 games played.

That said, Barkley hasn’t helped himself with what at times has looked like uncertainty after taking the hand-off, leading to defenders catching up to him and dropping him for either minimal yardage or a loss. A running back has to help out his blockers, and it can be argued that Barkley didn’t always do that last year.

His pass blocking has also been another minus of his game. Per Pro Football Focus, Barkley was tied for 12th among running backs for most pass pressures allowed last year (six) and, in fact, led all NFL running backs who were part of his draft class in that category. Barkley has 20 career pressures allowed in 219 pass-blocking snaps, a 93.6 pass-blocking efficiency rating.

Despite this short history, the Giants are optimistic that their new system will better take advantage of what the former Penn State star does well. One of those things is his ability to win one-on-one matchups in space when he goes up against a linebacker or defensive back.

Another is his receiving ability, where he’s caught 76.3 percent of his pass targets, averaging 7.8 yards per reception. The Giants, in recognizing that, have already run several looks in which Barkley has lined up in the slot and out wide during spring practices, where he found success in those drills.

But if Barkley, who is in a contract year, is to earn a big payday, he will have to show he can be a do-it-all back. That includes picking up his pass-blocking game and lowering his shoulder more consistently to move a pile on designed runs between the tackles.