Saquon Barkley was active but limited on Sunday, getting just 11 touches and 48 yards from scrimmage – not quite a “pitch count” per se, according to his head coach, but part of the plan to make sure he wasn’t compromised from the neck injury he suffered in practice this week.
“I wouldn’t say we had a pitch count, but we had a plan,” Daboll said after the Giants’ loss to Philly. “He came in early and got looked at and got his treatment, and we wanted to make sure we were smart with him. He was good to go, but I wanted to make sure we weren’t overloading him.”
“It kind of was up to the last minute with the neck and the only thing I did was just continue to rehab it all week and trust the doctors, trust the trainers and they kept telling me if it keeps getting better, I'll get a shot and get a chance,” Barkley added. “I woke up this morning and I felt like I was ready to go and the doctor agreed with me.”
It never crossed Barkley’s mind once that happened to sit out Sunday and be ready for Washington, but in the end, it was a pretty equal share between Barkley, Gary Brightwell (five carries, two catches on three targets), and Matt Breida (three carries, four targets/two catches), which Saquon understood.
“I wasn't limited. I think it was part of just the game plan,” he said. “I know that we were willing to get the rotation going and Gary and Matt went in there and did a good job too. Obviously everyone knows my neck, I was limited all week after I kind of tweaked it or whatever in practice, but I was able to pass the tests and was able to get out there.”
However, coming out of the game, Barkley said he “came out pretty good” health-wise, the neck didn’t affect him, and he’ll be good to go next week – and even thinks he could’ve been a bit more of a factor Sunday if needed.
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“I could have played more than that. I was ready to go, but obviously the game plan and just the way the game played out, that wasn't the case,” Barkley said. “Coach kind of told me he’d go with GB and Breida, and I just tried to be a good teammate and be supportive. I mean, that’s it. Obviously, I would have loved to play a lot more, but the reason why I didn't play as much was not because of my neck.”
Saquon was visibly upset answering that, but not in a “lack of playing time way,” but more of with an understanding of the dichotomy that was his actual playing time versus expected.
“I really don't know what the balance is like. If I don't play enough, I've got to answer the questions; if I play too much, I've got to answer those questions,” he said. “I'm not really directly coming at you, but, I mean, I don't know what you guys really want from me with the answers on that. It was part of the game plan.”
Even days after it happened, Barkley’s still not sure what caused the neck issue, as it was “just a regular play in practice” where he first felt it.
“I caught the ball, tagging off, kind of spun out of it, and something just flared in my neck,” he said, “but, hey, everything happens for a reason. I'm just happy that I'm healthy and was able to go today. Like I said, I would love to have played more, but I look forward to the next opportunity and I'm probably sure I will have more of a bigger role than this game.”
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He's also not sure if the neck issue is related the shoulder injury he has played through much of the season, a shoulder that took another big blow on Sunday.
“I wouldn’t say that (the neck was because of the shoulder) but you never know,” Barkley said. “(Today) someone ran on it, but I think it was flat, so it wasn't like anything crazy. Good run, landed, got four or five yards, came out the game for a play or two, part of the rotation, and that was it.”
But as he said, he’s sure he’s going to have a bigger role next week, for that’s a game where the 7-5-1 Giants may be playing for their playoff lives against the 7-5-1 Commanders, especially if the 7-6 Seahawks can defeat the Niners on Thursday night and claw back onto the playoff ladder.
The Giants are 1-3-1 since their bye, and with Minnesota, Indianapolis, and Philly again on their schedule beyond next week, they need to snap this skid of adversity and fast.
“Most teams go through adversity throughout the season. And we’re 1-3-1 in the last five games, so it’s a rough patch. We started out really hot and now we've got to figure it out and that's life, that's football,” he said. “You’re going to have your ups and downs, but it's who you are in those moments. After a game getting embarrassed, where everyone outside of us is saying, 'the sky is falling, the sky's falling,’ what better opportunity to come in and go against a divisional opponent, go to their home and try to come out with a win.”
Follow Lou DiPietro on Twitter: @LouDiPietroWFAN
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