Getty A former Super Bowl-winning RB for the New York Giants had a surprising response to Saquon Barkley joining the rival Philadelphia Eagles.
Tiki Barber didn’t like Saquon Barkley leaving the New York Giants for the Philadelphia Eagles in 2024 NFL free agency, but another former running back for Big Blue, Brandon Jacobs, had a different response.
Jacobs, who helped the Giants win the 2008 and 2012 Super Bowls, was asked by Pat Leonard of the New York Daily News about his response to Barkley becoming an Eagle. Surprisingly, Jacobs responded, “I loved it. The guy gave the Giants a lot from the time he was drafted. He did everything they asked him to do. He wanted to be in New York. He wanted to play with the Giants. He didn’t want to leave. That’s just what it is. So he ended up having an opportunity to get $12.5 million [per year] from our rival right down the street.”
While Jacobs admitted “it sucks” to see Barkley join the old enemy, he also believes the two-time Pro Bowler “deserved to make every dollar he could possibly make, because he’s put the hard work and dedication in to be able to do that.”
The idea that Barkley deserved to take a beefy contract from the Eagles likely won’t be shared by many Giants fans. Especially if the player drafted by the team second overall in 2018 punishes his former employers twice a season.
Saquon Barkley Move Still Dividing Opinion
There’s still no consensus among former Giants players about how to view Barkley joining the team’s biggest rivals in the NFC East. The division of opinion is most obvious among Big Blue’s running back fraternity.
Franchise rushing leader Barber engaged in a public war of words with Barkley shorty after the latter agreed terms with the Eagles. Their spat involved the issue of respective legacies, but perhaps legacy is why Jacobs can afford to be more magnanimous about Barkley’s move.
Jacobs is two up on both Barber and Barkley when it comes to Lombardi Trophies. Ironically, he was never a featured back, nor as versatile and dynamic as his more prolific successors.
Even so, the Giants still lack a runner who possesses what Jacobs brought to the field and added to the personality of his teams.
Giants Still Lack a Brandon Jacobs-Type Runner
What Jacobs did was define the smash-mouth element of the Giants’ offense during his playing days. A 6-foot-4, 246-pounder who rarely shied away from contact, Jacobs loved to punish would-be tacklers.
So much so, even his own teammates were reluctant to try and fell Jacobs. He told Leonard how “we changed practice on account of that. My teammates they weren’t, and I just learned this from (Mathias) Kiwanuka the other day, they really could like, ‘we gotta tackle him at practice and we going full speed and that’s just not something that we care to do every day.'”
As much as those in Giants blue may have been reluctant to hit Jacobs, opposing teams likely dreaded the prospect even more. He was the bludgeoning force in a running game otherwise built around the speed and moves of Ahmad Bradshaw and Derrick Ward.
Barkley could also bring the oomph when needed, and the 233-pounder’s physicality will be missed. Especially since today’s Giants have a backfield defined more by quickness thanks to veteran Devin Singletary and potential rookie starter, fifth-round pick Tyrone Tracy Jr.
What’s missing is a back with Jacobs’ bruising playing style. Adding one would let the Giants complete the committee they’ll need to adequately replace Barkley.