The New York Giants being featured on “Hard Knocks” may have lit a fire under one of their biggest rivals.
As the debut episode premiered Tuesday night on HBO and MAX, much of the focus was on the team’s process regarding then-free agent star Saquon Barkley, who eventually signed with the Philadelphia Eagles.
Several meetings with the front office (and even John Mara) showed general manager Joe Schoen’s hesitancy to re-sign Barkley at a market price.
After tuning into the episode, Eagles star wide receiver A.J. Brown vowed vengeance on the Giants for seemingly underestimating Barkley’s market.
The Saquon video fired me up and it wasn’t even about me . I’m going to do everything in my power to make sure you get yours fam! @saquon
— AJ BROWN (@1kalwaysopen_) July 3, 2024
Which video Brown is referring to remains unknown. His situation with the Giants entering free agency took up the bulk of the episode.
Brown could be referring to this video where the front office discusses what the offense would be without Barkley.
#Giants exec Tim McDonnell on possibly losing Saquon Barkley:
“We lose Saquon, what’s our identity gonna be?”
GM Joe Schoen: “We’ve gotta upgrade the offensive line, and you’re paying Daniel Jones $ 40M. It’s not to hand the ball off to a $ 12M back.”pic.twitter.com/8XLdhpgM8K https://t.co/GbufUeZZWV
— Ari Meirov (@MySportsUpdate) July 3, 2024
Or this one, where viewers got an inside look at a conversation between Schoen and Mara, the latter of which clearly wanted Barkley back.
#Giants GM Joe Schoen and owner John Mara discussing what to do with Saquon Barkley:
Mara: “In a perfect world, I’d still like to have him back.”pic.twitter.com/ueQG1XcmlR
— Ari Meirov (@MySportsUpdate) July 3, 2024
Or maybe this one where Schoen may have shown that the Giants were underestimating Barkley’s value from the start.
#Giants GM Joe Schoen and owner John Mara discussing what to do with Saquon Barkley:
Mara: “In a perfect world, I’d still like to have him back.”pic.twitter.com/ueQG1XcmlR
— Ari Meirov (@MySportsUpdate) July 3, 2024
Either way, the Giants will have to see Barkley twice a year in a rival uniform, and an already dangerous star player has more motivation to show out for his teammate.
