When you think of the New York Giants, who is the player that comes to your mind? It’s probably Saquon Barkley. Barkley was the most-hyped prospect the Giants have had since Eli Manning and after an up and down beginning to his career he enjoyed a resurgence last season. That resurgence for Saquon led the Giants to the playoffs for the first time since 2016, but now he is threatening to sit out next season.

Now, the team is refusing to make Barkley one of the highest paid running backs in the league in the same tier as Derrick Henry and Nick Chubb. Barkley is arguably better than and has more years in the tank than. He is more than just an elite running back, he is a great receiver and outside of football, he is the most marketable player on the team.

For a big market team, the New York Giants should be willing to pay their star, not only as possibly the best running back in the league but one of the best playmakers as well. Saquon was a major part of last year’s Giants team that went 9-7-1 and was primarily a running team.

The Giants are one of the teams in the league that prefer to run the ball over throwing it and feature their running back in the offense heavily. Having Daniel Jones as their quarterback puts even more emphasis on the ground attack.

Speaking of Daniel Jones, he is owed the second-most cash out of any quarterback in the league for what most people would consider a quarterback ranked outside of the top 10 and some would even say outside of the top 15 or 20 in the league today

Possibly the money management has gotten away from the Giants and now they can’t afford to pay Saquon but the star running back is asking for just $5 million more per season than they are already paying him. The Giants also are skimping on paying wide receivers to aid their now highly paid quarterback.

The highest paid wide receiver on the roster will make just $1.4 million in base salary in 2023. Typically when saving on wide receiver, some of that money can be spent elsewhere on offense and towards the best player on the entire team in Saquon.

What it comes down to is the Giants barely made the playoffs last year with Saquon totalling 1,650 yards and 10 touchdowns. Where do you think the team will be this upcoming season without him and with other NFC East teams taking a leap while the Giants lose their best offensive talent?

Saquon Barkley has threatened to sit out as many games as it takes to get his new deal done. The Giants should be willing to work with him or it could be a lost season for the G Men.

By Jack Stradley, I’m a sports writer always looking for a gripping story and a hot take.