Saquon Barkley is a running back for the New York Giants. He was one of the best running backs in the Big Ten during his tenure at Penn State (2015-2017). The Bronx native accrued 5,557 yards from scrimmage in college, as well placing fourth in Heisman Trophy voting and third in Maxwell Award voting. He was a 2017 consensus All-American and the winner of the Paul Hornung Award, and was also named Big Ten Offensive Player of the Year in each of his final two seasons with the Nittany Lions.
Barkley has a pristine athletic profile. In addition to his 100th-percentile SPARQ-X score of 149.8, he also boasts a 4.40 40-time, a 124.3 Speed Score, and a 134.7 Burst Score - all 96th-percentile or better. A dominant pass-catcher and runner, Barkley saw a 14.8-percent college Target Share and also has a 75th-percentile College Dominator Rating of 32.2%. The New York Giants made Barkley the second overall pick of the 2018 NFL Draft and he immediately became a difference-maker at the NFL level. He rushed for 1,307 yards (2,028 total yards from scrimmage) and was named the NFL’s Offensive Player of the Year in his rookie season.
Barkley’s 2020 and 2021 seasons were marred with injuries. Just two games into the 2020 season, he suffered a torn ACL, MCL and meniscus that ended his season. When he returned in 2021, Barkley looked like a shell of himself. Despite ranking No. 26 in the league with 162 carries, Barkley totaled just 593 rushing yards and two rushing touchdowns. He did rank No. 24 in Yards Created and No. 23 in Evaded Tackles (57), while also being effective in the passing game. As a receiver, Barkley saw a 13.3-percent Target Share on 238 routes run. Hampered by an ankle sprain suffered upon his return, he ran for an underwhelming 3.5 True Yards Per Carry with just five Breakaway Runs.
The Giants relied heavily on Barkley during the 2022 season (No. 4 in Weighted Opportunities with 296.3). He was up to the challenge, running for a career-high 1,312 yards, his first 1000-yard season since 2019. He also added 57 receptions for 338 receiving yards with 10 total touchdowns. The Giants attempted to franchise tag Barkley for the 2023 season before signing him to a 1-year deal instead. Much of Barkley's fantasy production from 2024 was kept afloat by his rushing touchdowns (10). He was limited by a roulette of back up quarterbacks from Tommy DeVito, to Tyrod Taylor. Barkley would sign on with the Eagles where he projects to be the starter for the team, and he will be in easily his best offensive situation of his entire career.
