Joe Schoen of the NY Giants completely underestimated the value of Saquon Barkley as a free agent

One of the main focuses for NY Giants fans in the first episode of Hard Knocks was what happened to former running back Saquon Barkley. Thankfully, the team at HBO Max wasted no time in giving us an idea of ​​how things turned out.

To start with, Joe Schoen and his front office discussed Barkley’s value as a free agent in a meeting. Schoen didn’t seem at all convinced that a team would make him a huge offer. However, others knew something big could be on the way. Schoen didn’t know that, and he clearly had no idea Philly would try to make something happen.

Barkley ended up signing a three-year deal with the Eagles and Howie Roseman. He’s now getting ready to play behind the best offensive line of his career, which will be a lot of fun for the folks in Philly. And what about everyone else in New York and New Jersey? Not so much.

Barkley spent the last six seasons with the G-Men, with highlights including two Pro Bowls and a trip to the postseason in 2022. Barkley was an electrifying sight that fall and winter, and we still remember his two touchdowns against the Vikings in the Wild Card Round.

However, as the 2023 season came to an end with Barkley missing even more time with an ankle injury, it seemed unlikely he would be brought back. The Giants didn’t want to franchise tag him and Schoen didn’t want to spend a lot of money on him either.

This opened the door for Barkley to negotiate with other teams and eventually a return to Pennsylvania, his home state, happened. Giants fans hate the fact that Barkley starts for the opposition, but this first episode of Hard Knocks showed us that Schoen didn’t really see this coming and wasn’t willing to give him the kind of bag that Roseman eventually gave him.