Nov 18, 2018; East Rutherford, NJ, USA; New York Giants wide receiver Odell Beckham (13) celebrates his touchdown with running back Saquon Barkley (26) as quarterback Eli Manning (10) looks on during the second half at MetLife Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Vincent Carchietta-USA TODAY Sports
Twitter never ceases to amaze me with its fan-driven narratives and absurd statements. The latest New York Giants related tweet I scratched my head about was regarding Saquon Barkley’s struggles and that Odell Beckham Jr. might have his hand in the cookie jar.
Aside from Beckham Jr. being shipped to the Cleveland Browns, there are far more justifiable reasons for Barkley’s lack of production. The first argument I made pointed directly at the high ankle sprain he suffered in week three and his statistical output after the injury.
The first two weeks of the seasons saw Barkley break the 100-yard rushing mark twice, since then, he’s amassed ove 72 yards just once over seven games, as he rushed for 83 yards last week against the Green Bay Packers in the snow. There’s a clear dropoff here, after he sustained the injury.
Now, let’s factor in the lack of offensive line support. The front five for the New York Giants currently rank 26th in the league, per FootballOutsiders.com. Left tackle Nate Solder has been a liability for Big Blue all season and left guard Will Hernandez hasn’t seen the development most hoped he would experience. Solder and center Jon Halapio have both contributed towards his plateau. Right guard Kevin Zeitler has been solid, but right tackle Mike Remmers has had his issues as well.
Aside from the lack of production in the trenches, dealing with a rookie quarterback in Daniel Jones has been a work in progress. There have been times where Jones fails to recognize blitzes and dooms Barkley from the start. Eli Manning was far better at identifying defensive looks and audibling to help his players succeed. Manning was also known for his dump-off tactics, which benefited Barkley tremendously.
Overall, the OBJ factor in Barkley’s struggles could be present, but it’s so small it’s not even worth considering in the big picture.
Nonetheless–
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Mike Rosenstein – Head coach candidate to replace Giants’ Pat Shurmur comes with warning for Steve Tisch, John Mara from NFL insider
Ryan Dunleavy – Why Saquon Barkley could bust out now that Eli Manning is back
This post was published on 2019-12-07 07:10
