Saquon Barkley discusses staying with Giants through trade deadline

New York Giants star running back Saquon Barkley left no doubt before Tuesday's trade deadline he wants to stay with the team that drafted him back in 2018 through his entire NFL career. 

Barkley reiterated that take after he remained a Giant leading up to this Sunday's game at the 3-5 Las Vegas Raiders. 

"After everything that happened in the offseason and realizing and growing up and seeing the business side of it, knowing that it’s rare for one player to be on one team for a long time, that’s something I would love to be part of and I’ve been vocal about that," Barkley told reporters on Thursday, per Tom Rock of Newsday.

Barkley and his camp wanted to sign a long-term contract with the Giants this past offseason but instead settled for a one-year deal after his rights for 2023 were retained via the franchise tag. He insisted last week he doesn't regret reporting for training camp despite not receiving his desired agreement, and the Giants assured him before Tuesday's deadline he wasn't going anywhere. 

Giants general manager Joe Schoen can apply a second franchise tag worth around $12M to Barkley this coming March. That's just one reason the 26-year-old realizes Schoen and company aren't necessarily committed to keeping who is routinely referred to as "the face of the franchise" beyond Week 18. 

"To say they are recommitting? I don’t focus on that at all," Barkley directly said about still being with the Giants for the first weekend of November. "I just know that it’s the NFL. There’s really nothing I can do about it." 

The Giants could be headed toward a franchise-altering offseason if they ultimately possess a top draft pick that could be used to acquire a talent such as USC Trojans quarterback Caleb Williams next spring. If Barkley and his teammates truly want to keep the band together, they must start stacking wins beginning with this weekend's contest at Allegiant Stadium. 

On Friday afternoon, oddschecker listed the 2-6 Giants as 1.5-point underdogs against the Raiders.