Getty Dallas Cowboys pass rusher Micah Parsons reacts after a play.
The Dallas Cowboys will be closely watching the situation surrounding New York Giants star Saquon Barkley, with Micah Parsons already speaking on it.
Barkley was franchise tagged earlier in the offseason, but has yet to sign the tag and is therefore ineligible to participate in the Giants’ offseason program. While it still seems inevitable that Barkley will play in 2023, there just may be a stalemate during the offseason.
For Parsons, the situation is clear: Barkley deserves the a long-term deal. The Cowboys pass rusher took to Twitter to voice his thoughts on April 13.
“I mean yeah that’s what happens when you the best players on your team you idiot!! The scheme on Monday morning is we well not let SAQUON BARKLEY BEAT Us!! People just think we be out here playing free for all!! like gtfo! That mf is that offense! Pay him!” Parsons wrote.
The Tweet was in response to a fan claiming that Barkley fell off in the back half of the 2022 season. Parsons’ argument is that Barkley demands extra attention from opposing defenses and that’s why his production did not maintain over the course of the fall.
Did Barkley Fall Off for Giants?
While Parsons’ opinion is clear, the Cowboys’ defender also has a bit of bias as a former Penn State alumnus like Barkley. However, it’s hard to say that @WBG84 doesn’t make a fair point.
“Barkley’s 1st 9 games: 931 rushing yards Barkley’s last 8: 359 rushing yards He was wearing down and not as effective in the final half of the season. Not “weird s—” Just facts,” the user posted.
On the whole, Barkley’s season was impressive. Pro Football Reference states that he racked up 1312 rushing yards and ten touchdowns, with an additional 382 receiving yards to boot.
It is normal for a running back to decline in production toward the end of the season, but it’s clear opposing defenses figured out how to counter Barkley or that he truly was running out of gas.
Comparing his two games against Dallas backs this up. In the first contest in Week 3, the Giants RB went for 126 total yards from scrimmage and a touchdown. In Week 12, Barkley totaled 52 total yards from scrimmage and a touchdown.
Cowboys Have Own Situation at RB
While the Giants try to figure out how to navigate their situation with Barkley, Dallas is midway through their own process at the running back position. The Cowboys also used their franchise tag on a ball carrier, this time using it on Tony Pollard.
They opted to release running back Ezekiel Elliott, who was set to be the highest-paid RB in the league in 2023. While that move saves them some money and ends the Zeke era, Dallas still needs a back to complement Pollard.
The obvious name that Dallas has been linked to has been Bijan Robinson, the RB out of Texas who is expected to be the first running back taken. However, there have also been other avenues that have popped up such as trading for Kansas City Chiefs running back Clyde Edwards-Helaire.