This Thursday, the same day Eagles running back Saquon Barkley plays against his former Giants team in New York, a documentary titled Saquon will be released for streaming on Prime Video. Per Ryan Dunleavy of the New York Post, the project divulges some new information, like how team owner John Mara declined Barkley’s request for a trade before he eventually hit free agency. 
The documentary follows Barkley as he goes through the trials and tribulations of his contact negotiations with New York that never quite worked out into a new deal. Barkley reportedly shows the emotional side of the ordeal, during which he considered brash moves like publicly demanding a trade or causing other sorts of online drama before ultimately allowing his better judgement to keep him from acting on impulse.
Dunleavy details a part of the documentary that takes place “at the height of (Barkley’s) frustration,” on the final day in 2023 for franchise-tagged players to sign long-term extensions. On the day, Barkley reportedly asked Mara directly for permission to seek a trade.
“I’m not going to do that,” Mara said in response, per Dunleavy. “That makes no sense for us. To be honest with you, it’s not going to be in your long-term best interest to do that. There’s no way that I would allow that at this point. You are too valuable to this franchise.”
Barkley’s value to the franchise was apparently too great to consider trading, but seemingly not great enough to pay. In the project, Barkley laments how he would’ve settled for $10MM or $11MM per year, if New York had just operated with an air of mutual respect. Instead, as he tried to meet them in the middle, the Giants never seemed to budge an inch.
Barkley explained how he believed he was being “spitefully penalized for not accepting the Giants’ first contract offer,” one made during the team’s bye week in 2022. That deal would’ve given him only $18MM guaranteed over a three-year period when the franchise tag at that time guaranteed $10.1MM in just a single year alone.
While Mara was obviously looking out for the team’s best interest in not permitting Barkley to seek trade interest, a warning had come from general manager Joe Schoen months earlier telling the top brass not to grant the request to Barkley. Barkley had suggested the idea of having his agent quietly call around to gauge his market to aid him in his negotiations, but Schoen warned him off of it, “hinting that he would want a first- or second-round pick in return.”
As history recalls, no trades took place, even as the Giants crossed the 2023 trade deadline with a 2-6 record, and when final offers were exchanged between team and player, the two sides were less than $2MM apart in both total value and total guarantees. Barkley signed the three-year, $37.75MM deal in Philadelphia with $26MM guaranteed, and after a record-setting 2024 campaign that many assert would not have been possible in New York, the Eagles extended his contract another two years for $41.2MM.
John ‘Karma’ Mara. Way to play hardball with your best player on your team.
This feels a bit…um, early? Is it the norm for players to produce documentaries about themselves before their careers are over yet?
I don’t think the idea is any stranger than a team trying to promote itself with a Pet Detective movie…lol.
Save your popcorn for the Mark Sanchez documentary 🙂
“I’m not going to do that,” Mara said in response, per Dunleavy. “That makes no sense for us. To be honest with you, it’s not going to be in your long-term best interest to do that. There’s no way that I would allow that at this point. You are too valuable to this franchise.”
Ok now that’s hilarious!
Definitely a “we own you” vibe
What a fumble by the Giants. Like all time bad.
Another good Giants fumble story centers around Buck Buchanan. He was drafted by both the Chiefs and Giants when the AFL and NFL were at war. Apparently the Giants managed to get Buck on ice in a hotel room. Some guy was suppose to babysit Buck while the Giants got their GM over to the place with a contract. Turns out the babysitter got drunk and feel asleep and Buck escaped through a window to join the Chiefs and become a future HOFer.
lol
Jesus Christ Saquon, get over it already. Pathetically can’t stop talking giants
Shut up, John.
As a not so impartial Cowboys fan, I have no interest in watching this documentary. I doubt it could do any more to reinforce to me that Mara is an absolute putz and that the Cowboys should have been ultra aggressive in trying to land Barkley, rather than seeing him go to Philly. Which further reinforces my belief that Jerry is also an absolute putz. Considering how long Mara, Jones and Snyder owned three teams in the division, it amazes me that the Eagles haven’t won it almost every season the past 20 years or so. First, the Giants choose Jones over Barkley and watch Jones fall apart and Barkley put up an all time season and win a Super Bowl and then they watch Jones turn things around with the Colts with a different coaching staff unlocking his potential. Well, as a Dallas fan, at least I can say we’re ot the Giants. It’s not much. But it’s something.
if there’s one thing I’ve noticed about fans of the team in Dallas is that they always feel the need to put their team in conversations that have nothing directly to do with them.
Free speech. Besides, Dallas is America’s team. Everyone wants them in every conversation. Especially you. So, you’re welcome.
my thanks are very limited in your direction.