Some would say that the New York Giants aren’t in a good spot right now. The team is in a position to either go 1-1 or 0-2 this Sunday against the Bills, but the team is a small underdog even at home against their AFC East opponent, who managed to take down the Jets by one point in their own season opener. Those odds are, of course, impacted by a couple of things including Golden Tate’s suspension which won’t be over until week five, as well as injuries that the Giants picked up against the Cowboys or that carried over from the offseason.
What does Saquon Barkley think about the situation the Giants are in right now? Well, not long after being named one of the team’s offensive captains prior to the start of the season, Barkley has already exercised some leadership in attempting to calm the masses about where the team is right now. According to Barkley, it’s not the locker room that’s panicking over an 0-1 start but the voices outside of it.
“I don’t feel like that in the locker room, I feel it’s more like everyone outside of our locker room that’s panicking. When you break it down, there’s what, 32 teams in the NFL? Half of those teams lost last week — besides two of them, they tied — but half of those teams lost,” Barkley stated plainly. “Just because you won big don’t mean you’re gonna go 16-0, just because you lost bad don’t mean you’re gonna go 0-16.”
“Don’t panic. Just find a way to get better every single week, get one percent better every single day and when the games come, just try to execute at a high level,” Barkley added.
The loss on Sunday definitely wasn’t the fault of Barkley. Barkley had 120 rushing yards, but with the coaching staff under-using him and only giving him eleven rushes overall, which ended up being a point of controversy as the passing offense couldn’t carry the team and the Giants finished the game with only 17 points.
Will Barkley see more use in the next game? If the coaching staff listens to feedback, possibly – but if there’s one thing that’s certain about the current Giants coaching regime, it’s that no one quite knows what to expect, let alone can predict their actions.