Saquon Barkley sits out Giants' preseason finale, but puts in good work ahead of game
Giants running back Saquon Barkley warms up before a preseason game against the New England Patriots, Sunday, Aug. 29, 2021. Credit: AP/Noah K. Murray
Saquon Barkley did not get any action in preseason games this season. On Sunday he did get some pre-preseason game work in.
The running back was on the field about two hours ahead of the kickoff against the Patriots at MetLife Stadium running routes, catching passes from Daniel Jones — including a one-handed snag — and even working on his conditioning with some sideline-to-sideline gassers. When most of the other quarterbacks and receivers had left the field, Barkley stayed behind and ran even more routes with third-string quarterback Brian Lewerke, at one point sprinting 40 yards on a go route only to overrun the pass by a good five yards.
It was the latest indication that Barkley is closing in on full readiness for the Sept. 12 opener against the Broncos.
The Giants have been unwilling to peg Barkley’s return from a torn ACL to that deadline, but as it now looms within two weeks there is certainly a clock ticking toward the opener.
"The focus will be really gearing him up to as much 11-on-11 as we can give with our own team, controlling the situation, and then also putting him in some situations where he’s going to go out there and just react," Judge said of Barkley on Friday. "That's really the biggest test physically coming off any injury when you're on the field, it’s the reactionary quickness and the sudden shift to play… We've got two weeks right now. We're going to just do right by him by seeing how he practices and make the decision based on that."
Notes & quotes: Besides Barkley, the following players were scratched for participation in the game prior to kickoff: WR Kenny Golladay (hamstring), WR Kadarius Toney (COVID-10/hamstring), TE Kyle Rudolph (foot), WR John Ross (hamstring), CB Adoree’ Jackson (ankle), B Josh Jackson, LB Elerson Smith, G Shane Lemieux (knee), DT Danny Shelton, and WR Austin Mack . . . Former Patriot Nate Solder started at right tackle ahead of Matt Peart, who had been getting first-team reps but struggled in joint practices during the week . . . Joe Judge wore a red United States Marine Corps cap during the game.
Tom Rock began covering sports for Newsday in 1996 and became its NFL columnist in 2022. He previously was Newsday's Giants beat writer beginning in 2008.
