New York Giants running back Saquon Barkley is entering his second season in the NFL, and the optimism is running rampant. After all, the first-round pick from Penn State tallied more than 2,000 scrimmage yards as a rookie and served as the best offensive weapon on the team during a 5-11 season. With multiple changes to the offense, including the departure of Odell Beckham Jr., it will be critical that Barkley is even better for the Giants during the 2019 season.
More importantly, it will be essential that Barkley continues to produce at this level as he grows as an NFL player. Many players have entered the league and wildly produced as a rookie or early in their career, only to fall off the proverbial cliff.
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Quarterback Josh Freeman and running back Peyton Hillis are both examples of this trend, but Barkley needs to avoid following suit. Fortunately, legendary quarterback Tom Brady just issued a challenge to the young Giants star.
.@saquon on meeting @TomBrady for the first time #NFL100 @heykayadams @KyleBrandt pic.twitter.com/6IhRfSQsOp
— Art Stapleton (@art_stapleton) August 27, 2019
“It’s great to do it for one season, but can you do it for five? Can you do it for 10?” Barkley remembers Brady saying. “I’m standing there at the Met Gala ready to run through a brick wall.”
Barkley said that Brady was very nice to him and even said that he was a fan, but those platitudes will only last for a short period of time. Once the regular season begins, the Patriots quarterback will be 100 percent focused on dismantling every single opponent.
For Barkley, this means that the week six matchup with New England will be a hard-fought game. There will be no friendly chats with Brady outside of warmups. This will be all business, especially considering that the Patriots quarterback has lost two of the biggest games of his career to the Giants and quarterback Eli Manning, Super Bowls XLII and XLVI.
That being said, Brady’s challenge could make this game far more difficult for his own team. Barkley said that he was ready to run through a brick wall after talking to the six-time champion quarterback. He was already viewed as one of the league’s most dangerous weapons after only one season with Big Blue, so what does this mean for his future prospects? Will Barkley singlehandedly lead this team to multiple victories, including one against the Patriots?
The answer will be provided in week six when the two teams face off.
