Giants Pick Up RB Saquon Barkley’s Fifth-Year Option
As we all expected, Saquon Barkley will be sticking around New York through at least the 2022 season. The Giants have picked up the star running back’s fifth-year option, reports ESPN’s Adam Schefter (via Twitter).
[RELATED: 2022 NFL Fifth-Year Option Tracker]
Barkley will earn a guaranteed base salary of $7.217MM during that 2022 campaign. As things currently stand, Barkley would have the ninth-highest cap hit at his position that season.
Considering the modest salary, it’s hardly a surprise that the Giants have made this move. Since he was selected with the second-overall pick in the 2018 draft, Barkley has establish himself as one of the top running backs in the NFL. He had a historic rookie campaign where he compiled 2,028 yards from scrimmage and 15 touchdowns in 16 games. He had an equally impressive 5.4 yards per touch in 2019, but he missed three games thanks to a high ankle sprain.
Most of us are familiar with Barkley’s 2020 campaign. The 24-year-old only saw time in two games before succumbing to a torn ACL. The injury ultimately ended his season, although Schefter reported earlier today that the running back is on track to be ready for the start of the 2021 season. Considering the short shelf life of running backs, it’s a good sign that Barkley is seemingly recovering well from the injury.
Following the recent trend of teams dumping first-round running backs following their rookie contracts, there have been some questions about whether Barkley would stick around New York long term. While Giants owner John Mara previously stated that the organization wasn’t in any rush to extend the Pro Bowler, he also made it clear that he wants Barkley to stick around New York.
“We’re not in any hurry to do that,” Mara said at the time. “We fully expect him to be as good as new. … We hope he’s going to be a Giant for life. At the appropriate time, we’ll start those discussions.”
Updated 2021 NFL Draft Order: Round 1
The Ravens sent Orlando Brown to the Chiefs on Friday, shuffling the first-round order of the NFL Draft once again. Now, the Ravens are one of four teams to hold multiple first-round picks, joining the Jaguars (Nos. 1 and 25), Jets (Nos. 2 and 23), and Dolphins (Nos. 6 and 18). In turn, Chiefs no longer have a top-32 choice, joining the Seahawks, Texans, and Rams.
As we look ahead to Thursday, here’s how the first round currently stands:
1. Jacksonville Jaguars
2. New York Jets
3. San Francisco 49ers (from HOU via MIA)
4. Atlanta Falcons
5. Cincinnati Bengals
6. Miami Dolphins (from PHI)
7. Detroit Lions
8. Carolina Panthers
9. Denver Broncos
10. Dallas Cowboys
11. New York Giants
12. Philadelphia Eagles (from SF via MIA)
13. Los Angeles Chargers
14. Minnesota Vikings
15. New England Patriots
16. Arizona Cardinals
17. Las Vegas Raiders
18. Miami Dolphins
19. Washington Football Team
20. Chicago Bears
21. Indianapolis Colts
22. Tennessee Titans
23. New York Jets (from SEA)
24. Pittsburgh Steelers
25. Jacksonville Jaguars (from LAR)
26. Cleveland Browns
27. Baltimore Ravens
28. New Orleans Saints
29. Green Bay Packers
30. Buffalo Bills
31. Baltimore Ravens (from KC)
32. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Giants Trading Down From No. 11 In Play
While history certainly suggests the Giants will not move down from their No. 11 overall draft slot, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets this is a scenario the team is considering.
GM Dave Gettleman, famously, has not traded down in any round during eight drafts as a GM — five with the Panthers, three back with the Giants. The Giants have not moved down in Round 1 since 2006, when they traded back with the Steelers and drafted Mathias Kiwanuka at No. 32. But the team has done extensive work on an edge rusher class that may not feature a talent worth selecting at No. 11 overall.
The Giants have also been linked to adding another wide receiver, and a trade-down scenario may depend on whether Alabama stars DeVonta Smith and Jaylen Waddle are on the board at 11. Big Blue, however, already handed out the top wideout contract (by far) this offseason, in signing Kenny Golladay to an $18MM-per-year deal. The Giants have Golladay, Sterling Shepard and Darius Slayton penciled in as their top three receivers.
New York has been in need on the edge for years. The team did not address the position with a notable draft pick last year and has since traded Markus Golden and let 2020 stopgap solution Kyler Fackrell walk in free agency; he signed with the Chargers. The Giants do feature high-end talent on their defensive line, with Leonard Williams signing a monster extension this offseason, but certainly could use help at outside linebacker. Moving down from No. 11 would put the team in better position, value-wise, to draft one in the first round.
The scenario that would obviously strengthen the Giants’ bargaining position at 11: one of this draft’s top quarterback prospects falling to this spot. The Giants have affirmed their faith in 2019 draftee Daniel Jones. Should Mac Jones, Trey Lance or Justin Fields be on the board at 11, the Giants would reside in a strong position to collect quality assets from a quarterback-seeking team — potentially the Patriots or Bears. However, this draft may well be the first to see five QBs selected in the top 10. The Giants may be interested in being the emergency vehicle for a QB-needy team, in the event that does not occur.
Minor NFL Transactions: 4/19/21
Today’s minor moves:
Baltimore Ravens
- Re-signed: C Trystan Colon-Castillo (ERFA), LB Kristian Welch (ERFA)
Carolina Panthers
- Placed on reserve-retired list: LB Jordan Mack; Mack opted out of the 2020 season
Detroit Lions
- Re-signed: OT Matt Nelson (ERFA)
Jacksonville Jaguars
- Re-signed: RB Dare Ogunbowale (ERFA)
Los Angeles Rams
- Waived: DB Tyrique McGhee; McGhee received a five-game PED suspension earlier this month
New York Giants
- Re-signed: RB Sandro Platzgummer
New York Jets
- Re-signed: TE Daniel Brown, WR Jeff Smith (ERFA)
Seattle Seahawks
- Re-signed: NT Bryan Mone
Multiple Teams Interested In Jason McCourty
Jason McCourty’s recent visit with the Giants went well, according to sources who spoke with ESPN.com’s Jordan Raanan (on Twitter). However, there are other teams in the mix, so it’s unlikely that the cornerback will put pen to paper straight away. 
[RELATED: Will Giants Draft WR In First Round?]
McCourty huddled up with former Patriots coach Joe Judge earlier this week. The deal wouldn’t just be a reunion — it’d be a homecoming for the Rutgers product, allowing him to play about an hour north of New Brunswick. McCourty spent the past three seasons with the Patriots, alongside his twin brother Devin. Now, he could spend his 13th season in New Jersey, supporting James Bradberry, Adoree’ Jackson, and defensive back Logan Ryan.
The 33-year-old (34 in August) played on 65% of the Pats’ defensive snaps and started eleven games last year. However, Pro Football Focus placed him outside of the top 75 at his position — a significant drop from 2018 (No. 6) and 2019 (No. 18) rankings.
Giants Could Still Consider WR In First Round
While the Giants have been busy adding to their wideout corps this offseason, that doesn’t mean they won’t add to the position via the draft. In fact, they could consider selecting a wide receiver with their first-round pick (No. 11 overall). Paul Schwartz of the New York Post writes that the Giants spending spree at the position “does not preclude the Giants from taking a wide receiver in the first round of this draft.”
The team made one of the biggest splashes in free agency by adding Kenny Golladay on a lucrative $72MM deal, and they signed speedy wideout John Ross, as well. This duo will join a core that features 2020 starters Sterling Shepard and Darius Slayton, as well as intriguing young options like C.J. Board and Dante Pettis. In other words, Daniel Jones should have plenty of targets to throw to next season, and co-owner John Mara previously seemed to imply that the team’s free agent success means the organization won’t be as tempted to add a wideout during the draft.
“It also takes pressure off of us going into the draft,” Mara told Schwartz when discussing the Golladay signing. “We don’t have to take a receiver in Round 1 or Round 2, we can sit there and just take the best player available when it comes to our spot. I think that’s another reason why it was so important to us.’’
Still, as Schwartz writes, the Giants will certainly be intrigued by a receiver depending on who’s on the board when it’s their time to make a selection. Specifically, the reporter points to the Alabama duo of DeVonta Smith or Jaylen Waddle; if either player is available at No. 11, Scwartz opines that the Giants “might be enticed to take the plunge.” Alternatively, the team could look to the second day of the draft to add another player at the position, with the writer pointing to prospects like Kadarius Toney, Amari Rodgers, and Rondale Moore.
Giants Leaning Toward Edge Rusher In Round 1?
Having needed an edge rusher for a few years now, the Giants may be set to address this need with their top offseason resource.
They have done a lot of work on the top edge defenders in this year’s draft, and sources informed SNY’s Ralph Vacchiano the current sense is this will be the direction the team takes with its No. 11 overall pick. The Giants have spent big to fill needs at wide receiver and cornerback, in adding Kenny Golladay and Adoree’ Jackson, but have lacked a long-term, starter-caliber edge rusher since trading Olivier Vernon in 2019.
The Giants could be faced with a major decision — not exactly uncommon for them in recent drafts — if Alabama wide receiver prospects DeVonta Smith and Jaylen Waddle remain on the board. Five quarterbacks may well go in the top 10, pushing down this offense-heavy draft’s top non-QB talents. The Giants have Golladay, Sterling Shepard and Darius Slayton penciled in as their top three receivers, but it should not be considered a lock the team would pass on potential value here in one of the ex-Crimson Tide stars.
New York is believed to be high on Michigan’s Kwity Paye and Georgia’s Azeez Ojulari, Vacchiano adds. The former ranks as Scouts Inc.’s top draft’s top pass-rushing prospect. With Ojulari ranked outside the top 20 overall, it may be difficult to envision the Giants going in that direction over a higher-value player at 11. Mel Kiper Jr.’s most recent mock has the Giants taking Waddle. A trade-down maneuver seems unlikely, given that GM Dave Gettleman‘s streak of never trading down has now lasted eight drafts — five in Carolina, three with New York.
Should the Giants stay at 11, they are also high on Northwestern tackle Rashawn Slater, per Vacchiano. The Giants went tackle at No. 4 overall last year and used a third-round pick on tackle Matt Peart. Nate Solder is also in line to return.
The Giants pursued Leonard Floyd, but he re-signed with the Rams. They passed on the rest of the 2020 pass rusher lot, which was rather crowded for the big-ticket position, and only kept Markus Golden via the rarely used UFA tender last year. The Giants waited until Round 7 to draft a pass rusher in 2020 and have since traded Golden and let 2020 signing Kyler Fackrell sign with the Chargers.
Gettleman passed on edge talent Josh Allen in 2019, drafting Daniel Jones instead and lost out on Chase Young thanks to a late-season win over Washington in 2019. The Giants’ need at outside linebacker has persisted, though the emergence of Leonard Williams as a sack artist may lessen the desperation at this spot to some degree.
Giants Meet With CB Jason McCourty
Having already handed out a big cornerback contract this offseason, the Giants are still looking for additional help at the position. They are hosting Jason McCourty on a visit Friday, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets.
This comes a few weeks after a report indicated mutual interest existed between McCourty and the Giants. He will huddle up with former Patriots assistant Joe Judge and other Giants brass to discuss a deal.
A Giants agreement would represent a homecoming of sorts for McCourty, who is a Rutgers alum who also played his high school ball in New Jersey. Jason McCourty, who entered the NFL a year ahead of twin brother Devin, spent the past three seasons with the Patriots. The 33-year-old corner intends to play a 13th season, and the Giants may ensure he does so in his home state. McCourty has a home in New Jersey and has a history with Judge.
The second-year Giants coach was on the Patriots’ staff for Jason McCourty’s first two seasons in New England, though he served as the Pats’ special teams coordinator and wide receivers coach during that span. Despite the Patriots having one of the NFL’s best cornerback contingents last season, McCourty played 65% of the team’s defensive snaps and started 11 games. Pro Football Focus observed a decline in play from the 12th-year veteran, however, dropping him outside the top 75 at cornerback after previously slotting him sixth (in 2018) and 18th (in ’19) at the position.
The Giants have made big-ticket additions at corner in each of the past two offseasons, having added James Bradberry last year and Adoree’ Jackson last month. They also have Logan Ryan locked down as well, after signing the former Patriots and Titans defender late last summer. McCourty, who has 18 career interceptions and three defensive touchdowns, would add to this overhaul under Judge.
Bears, Browns, Giants Latest To Opt-Out Of Offseason Workouts
Well, they’re falling like dominos now. A handful of teams had already issued statements through the NFLPA declaring their opposition to in-person offseason workouts, and now three more clubs have joined them.
The Bears, Browns, and Giants became the latest three teams to announce they prefer a virtual offseason, which the NFL had last year due to the COVID-19 pandemic. You can read the statements from this new trio respectively through these Twitter links. Chicago, Cleveland, and New York are now the sixth, seventh, and eighth teams to issue such statements.
The Broncos, Seahawks, Buccaneers, Lions, and Patriots have already done so. Just yesterday the league announced the schedule for offseason workouts, which can begin on Monday April 19th. The Browns’ statement begins by saying “the NFL’s memo outlining how they plan to implement voluntary workouts falls short of what we as players believe is adequate.”
Cleveland’s statement is perhaps especially notable since Browns center J.C. Tretter is president of the NFLPA. He was tagged in the post. The Bears’ says “the majority of our locker room,” seemingly indicating some players will be attending. The Patriots’ said something similar.
With this now being a growing trend across the league there is going to be a lot of fallout, and this is far from the last we’ll hear of it. Many players have workout bonuses tied to these phases, so it’ll be interesting to see how that all shakes out.
The NFL responded to some player complaints with a memo touting the benefits of in-person workouts at team facilities, which you can read courtesy of this tweet from Tom Pelissero of NFL Network. The league points out that any player who gets hurt at an in-person workout will be covered financially, but a player who gets hurt while working out on their own won’t be. More teams will likely follow suit in the coming days, so stay tuned.
Minor NFL Transactions: 4/14/21
We’ll keep track of today’s minor moves here:
Cleveland Browns
- Signed: TE Stephen Carlson, DT Sheldon Day
New York Giants
- Waived: DB Ryan Lewis