Giants owner John Mara didn’t want to see Saquon Barkley join Eagles

In footage from the most recent episode of Hard Knocks, Giants owner John Mara didn’t seem thrilled about the possibility of Saquon Barkley joining the Philadelphia Eagles.

In a clip from the show, which was filmed during the early portion of free agency, Mara asks Giants GM Joe Schoen for the latest on the Barkley situation.

Schoen tells him that he heard the Bears were driving up the price on Barkley but that the Eagles were out. But he also admitted he wasn’t sure if that was true.

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How did Mara respond?

“I’ll have a tough time sleeping if Saquon goes to Philadelphia, I’ll tell you that,” Mara said. “As I’ve told you … I’ve been around enough players, but he’s the most popular player we have by far.”

pic.twitter.com/Ei1b9Mw7KX
— TG Videos (@TalkinGiantsVid) July 17, 2024

Of course, Barkley did end up in Philadelphia. The Eagles signed him to a three-year, $37.75 million deal. That was more than the Giants were willing to pay.

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So even the owner making his feelings known about the situation didn’t sway Schoen to spend more on Barkley than he was comfortable with.

The #Giants have shown a lot more on Hard Knocks than expected. Give them a lot of credit.

On Saquon Barkley, they never made an offer this year. He was out of their price range. As Joe Schoen said, needed to prioritize the offensive line.

Don’t know how if you’ve watched the…
— Jordan Raanan (@JordanRaanan) July 17, 2024

This Hard Knocks season has been extremely interesting, giving fans some behind-the-scenes footage of the offseason. A big storyline has been Barkley’s free agency and getting a chance to see the Giants’ perspective on it is fascinating.

And Mara wasn’t the only member of the Giants front office concerned about Barkley going to the Eagles. Even Schoen was asking Barkley’s agent if the deal was coming from the NFC East.

The #Giants never made a final offer to Saquon Barkley after finding out he was out of their price range.

GM Joe Schoen talking to the agent: “We’re out. … Is it in the division? I’m trying to prepare myself mentally.”pic.twitter.com/LH278TBfR6
— Ari Meirov (@MySportsUpdate) July 17, 2024

After all that, Barkley is an Eagle and will report to training camp with the rest of the team on Tuesday. He spent six years with the Giants after getting taken with the No. 2 pick in 2018 but seemed ready for a new team.

“I think, the point I am in my career, just to be able to get a fresh start is good,” Barkley said in March. “Something new, a different excitement. I feel like I'm a rookie all over again.”