Giants not tagging Saquon Barkley, who will become a free agent

The New York Giants will not place the franchise tag on running back Saquon Barkley, allowing him to test the free agent waters for the first time in his career.

Barkley is expected to become one of the top players available when the new league year begins on March 13.

The #Giants are not franchise tagging RB Saquon Barkley again, source said. He’ll be one of the top free agents in a very good RB class. pic.twitter.com/AL4YHkO4Bp

— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) March 5, 2024

Giants general manager Joe Schoen said earlier this offseason that he’d like to avoid using the franchise tag for the second consecutive season, but left the door open to tag Barkley ahead of the 2024 NFL Combine. However, after meeting with Barkley’s representatives, they opted to take a different path.

Ryan Dunleavy of the New York Post reports that the Giants have not made an updated offer to Barkley since last July.

It seems the understanding was to let Barkley test the market and find out his true value after a relatively small gap on the Giants’ best offer of $23 million guaranteed could not be closed over the 69 weeks since the first offers were exchanged.

Schoen told reporters at the Combine that the value he placed Barkley last season remains the same.

“I think the world of Saquon and I still think he can play. So, my value for Saquon really hasn’t changed. Unfortunately, throughout the process, starting back in November of 2022, we weren’t able to come to an agreement in terms of where we both thought a deal made sense,” Schoen said.

The Giants and Barkley negotiated intensely last year but couldn’t bridge the gap over a remaining $1-$2 million, ultimately resulting in a brief holdout. The superstar back later signed a modified version of the franchise tag but failed to reach any of the added incentives throughout the season.