As snow swept across seemingly the entire country, Heavy Sports sat down with New York Giants star Saquon Barkley for an exclusive interview during the NFL playoffs. Games are being played in the kind of weather that is perfect for a punishing runner like Barkley to thrive.
Just days earlier, the Dallas Cowboys and Philadelphia Eagles joined the Giants in watching the postseason from home. Barkley’s rivals both lost in the wild card round within days of each other.
When asked about gaining any sort of satisfaction in watching his foes get eliminated, Barkley admitted there was a bit of joy. The playmaker added that it was not enough to talk trash to the Cowboys stars given how the Giants season unfolded. Barkley was candid about getting “whooped” by Dallas in the team’s two matchups against New York.
“It definitely put a smile on your face,” Barkley said of the Cowboys and Eagles both being eliminated early. “I definitely know for the Giants fans and Giants nation it puts a bigger smile on their faces. As a player, you don’t want to see the NFC East rival hold up the trophy.
“But at the end of the day, if I see CeeDee [Lamb] or Micah [Parsons] in Vegas [during the Super Bowl], I’m not going to be [saying], ‘Oh, look at y’all. Y’all lost in the playoffs.’ It’s like, we didn’t make it to the playoffs. We got whooped by them two times this year.”
Saquon Barkley on the Dallas Cowboys: ‘Bright Lights, Dope Stadium’
All eyes are on Barkley as the star hits NFL free agency on March 11, 2024 sparking plenty of rumors. During a January 24 interview with Complex’s Zion Olojede, Barkley left the door open to playing elsewhere.
Two teams who Vegas oddsmakers have already linked to Barkley as potential landing spots are the Cowboys and Eagles. After six seasons in the NFC East, Barkley reflected on these rivalry matchups when asked about playing teams within the division. The star running back revealed that playing in Philadelphia lives up to the billing, while the Cowboys’ AT&T Stadium is a “dope stadium.”
“I would say probably the biggest difference is Philly, when you go to Philly,” Barkley remarked. “Just the atmosphere and environment is going to be completely different. Jerry World is more of like bright lights, dope stadium. Philly’s more like you’re going to have kids with moms and dads cursing you out. Fans just talking all kind of nonsense to you, and you just gotta block out the noise.”
Saquon Barkley Wants to Compete for Super Bowls as the Giants Star Hits NFL Free Agency
Wherever Barkley lands, it appears winning will be a priority for the playmaker. During the playoffs, Barkley took to X to express his desire to get back into the postseason.
“Nothing like playoff football! I gotta get back!!” Barkley said in a January 15 message.
SAQUON BARKLEY. GIANTS TAKE THE LEAD IN THE DIVISIONAL ROUND.
📺: #NYGvsGB on @NFLNetwork
📱: Stream on NFL+ https://t.co/l3JHbwdvOt pic.twitter.com/s6XjmYB4te— 𝙈𝙠 🌊 (@Lock2Odunze) January 21, 2024
Barkley explained his mindset behind the viral message which reached one million views. The running back wants to “compete for a Super Bowl,” and it will be interesting to see what contenders pursue Barkley in free agency.
“Knowing that it’s win or go home,” Barkley said of his message on X. “That’s what you want as a competitor. In this league, you want to have an opportunity to compete for a Super Bowl, and that’s really what [the tweet] was.
“That’s all it was, just realizing that, ‘Okay, I’m sitting here watching this.’ And last year I had the pleasure to be able to be in there and be part of it [the playoffs]. So, that’s gotta be the goal every single year. It’s always the goal. But I wasn’t able to accomplish that this year.”
Saquon Barkley Is Teaming Up With Marriott Bonvoy to Provide Fans With an Epic 2024 Super Bowl Experience
Barkley may not be playing in the Super Bowl, but the star is teaming up with Marriott Bonvoy to provide fans with an epic experience in Las Vegas. Fans bid on a package that includes Super Bowl tickets, a five-night stay in Vegas and golfing alongside Barkley and Giants teammate Tommy DeVito.
“You’re going to be able to go the Super Bowl, which is a cool experience,” Barkley explained. “Amazing, don’t get me wrong. But I think an even better part of the experience is you get to hang out with me and Tommy DeVito and play some golf. Talk some crap. Really get after it. So, two people are fortunate enough to win this. We’re excited. Make sure that they bring their ‘A’ game.”
Cowboys Rumors: Could Saquon Barkley Be a Fit in Dallas?
As for Barkley’s future, the Cowboys make a lot of sense as a potential landing spot. Heading into the season, head coach Mike McCarthy stressed the importance of the rushing attack in his offense. Yet, Dallas found themselves in the middle of the pack when games actually took place.
The Cowboys averaged 113.5 yards per game which ranked No. 15 among NFL teams in 2023. Over the last three games of the regular season, this number dropped to 105 yards per contest. During the team’s elimination loss to the Packers, no player topped 60 rushing yards.
All this leaves a question mark about Tony Pollard’s future with the former Pro Bowler set to join Barkley in free agency. Despite plenty of skepticism about the value of running backs, Barkley believes the position is essential to become a title contender.
“If you get a back that can be a workhorse and demand attention and take over games and make plays, it’s important,” Barkley said of the running back position. “It helps the game. Even in games where I don’t have that much success on the football field, head coaches, defensive coordinators comes up to me and [say], ‘You don’t know how hard it is to game plan against you.’”
“You still gain a lot of respect. I know everyone thinks right now the trend is how running backs [aren’t as important], it’s a passing league and running backs get injured and this, that and the third,” Barkley continued. “But trust me, I know from first hand [experience] how it’s a different conversation when you’re done with a game and your peers are speaking to you. Or you got your peers also as coaches and they’re looking in your eye and they’re telling you, ‘Every time you touch the ball, we’re worried about it.’”
Super Bowl 2024: 3 of the 4 Remaining Teams in the NFL Playoffs Boast Top-10 Ranked Rushing Attacks
Take a look around the remaining final four NFL teams heading into championship weekend and it seems to validate Barkley’s sales pitch. Three of the four teams rank inside the top 10 with the Kansas City Chiefs as the lone exception at No. 17.
https://twitter.com/SyedSchemes/status/1749597125845889130?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1749597125845889130%7Ctwgr%5Ede14f96479a47c39f9cc750f28dac5b1e9d2bbb0%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fheavy.com%2Fsports%2Fdallas-cowboys%2Fnfl-news-rumors-giants-saquon-barkley%2F
The No. 4 ranked San Francisco 49ers rely on Christian McCaffrey while the No. 1 Baltimore Ravens have a committee approach with Lamar Jackson playing a key role. Elsewhere, the Detroit Lions sit at No. 7 in rushing yards relying on a top-15 pick (Jahmyr Gibbs) and a veteran (David Montgomery) signed to a three-year, $18 million deal in free agency. The current state of the running back “sucks” according to Barkley, but just look at the teams with a chance to hoist the Lombardi Trophy.
“I feel like it’s gonna be back,” Barkley remarked. “It’s a trend. It sucks right now, but at the end of the day, the way you win football games and the way you win championships is by being able to play defense and you gotta be able to run the ball.”
