Saquon Barkley made his anticipated return to the field in the Giants’ Week 1 loss to the Broncos, but Big Blue fans weren’t treated to the Barkley they’re used to seeing on Sundays.
Now, just four days after playing in his first game back from ACL surgery, Barkley awaits to see if he will be a factor in New York’s offense in a big game on Thursday night against Washington.
One former Giants running back thinks Barkley shouldn’t be part of the team’s plans at all.
“I don’t want to say they rushed him, but it feels, watching that game, like they rushed him back on the field,” Tiki Barber told Moose and Maggie on Wednesday. “Maybe that’s him saying ‘I’m healthy, I’m good.’ It’s a lift, but I’m not sure it was prudent.
“You saw the game. You watched the film. You can see he didn’t look right. To me, that’s not healthy. I would not play him. We’ve seen him be amazing, but he’s not that amazing player right now.”
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Barkley was brought through Giants training camp with caution, and didn’t play in any preseason games, and was still limited in Sunday’s season opener. But even in 10 carries, which resulted in 26 yards, Barber could tell that Barkley wasn’t his usual dynamic self, which shouldn’t be a surprise following major knee surgery.
“I know it was exciting him playing Week 1, but he was hobbled, man,” Barber said. “You could see him at some points in the game, he’s limping around, not having real confidence in that knee. Not that there’s anything wrong with it, it’s fatigued. He hasn’t run like that in a while now.”
Barkley said the short turnover from Week 1 to Week 2 “isn’t ideal,” and the Giants may see it that way as well and limit Barkley’s usage, or sit him entirely. He was limited in practice on Tuesday, but regardless of what kind of rest he had over the past few days, Barber believes it will still take some more time for Barkley to get back to normal.
“When you’re physically not right, and I did this because I tore my PCL my rookie season, and I remember coming back from it and the only thing I was thinking about was ‘Get this step right, get this next step right, get the following step right,’ and the ball comes your way and it’s the last thing on your mind,” Barkley said. “When you’re healthy, you’re not thinking about your legs or joints. You’re just running, and the focus is on the football and how you’re gonna catch it cleanly.
“Because Saquon isn’t fully healthy yet, he’s distracted from the things he needs to do to be a great runner and receiver. He just can’t.”
Barkley is currently listed as questionable for Thursday night.
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