The New York Giants made the somewhat surprising decision not to tag running back Saquon Barkley or safety Xavier McKinney. This has Giants Nation wondering if the team plans on keeping both backs or is content with letting them walk out the door.
The Giants, despite the surprisingly generous boost in salary cap space, has given them $38+ million in total space and just slightly under $30 million in effective cap space (the space necessary to fit the top 51 highest cap numbers under the cap), are unlikely to be able to afford both Barkley and McKinney unless a weak market develops for their respective positions.
The Giants, who could restructure one or both contracts belonging to Dexter Lawrence and Andrew Thomas to create more cap space, which would solve the problem, obviously want to wait to see if such a move becomes necessary. But for the time being, with offensive line and edge rushing help being top priorities on general manager Joe Schoen’s “to-do” list, if it comes down to one of Barkley or McKinney, who should it be and why?
Before going into our take, Dan Benton of Giants Wire went with McKinney, noting, “McKinney, despite his faults, was a key piece to the Giants’ defense in 2023, taking every single snap on the season while producing career-best numbers. Allowing him to walk would create another massive hole GM Joe Schoen has to plug, and with limited money to spread around, it’s better suited for an every-snap player than an oft-injured running back looking for an above-market salary.”
While we would agree with the idea that the Giants shouldn’t get into the business of letting young talent that contributed as heavily as McKinney did last year, we also can’t get past the fact that the bulk of his production seemed to come on strong in the back half of the season as part of a perceived push to boost his argument for a top-dollar contract.
We also can’t get past the injuries. McKinney missed most of his rookie season after fracturing his foot in training camp, an injury that wasn’t his fault.
But the hand injury he suffered in his third season, while obviously not planned, resulted from his engaging in a risky activity. He may have been better off deferring his participation until after the season, considering the Giants were making a playoff push at the time.
McKinney’s versatility is a feather in his cap, but it also needs to be noted that his career has been a rollercoaster, not just because of injuries. He’s yet to earn a Pro Bowl berth, let alone an All-Pro nod. And while he hasn’t hit his ceiling, for him to believe he’ll be among the highest-paid safeties is an ambitious goal, as we just don’t see the Giants, despite the financial windfall, breaking open the bank to make McKinney the highest-paid at his position.
Barkley already faces the challenge of proving that he’s worth more than the average going rate these days at a position that’s fast becoming undervalued in the NFL. While the Giants have expressed a desire to have Barkley back, it should be remembered that last year, the team had hoped to adopt more of a committee approach and, in fact, for a while did so by removing Barkley from third-down duties.
With the Giants reportedly looking to acquire a No. 1 receiver in the draft, realistically speaking, does it make sense for the team to spend big money on a guy who not only has an injury history but who could see a reduction in his touches?
The answer is no, not if you plan on bringing Barkley back, limiting his touches to no more than 15 per game, and otherwise having him be a decoy.
So, of the two, one could indeed make the case for McKinney, though if McKinney were to leave, it might not be as catastrophic as some believe it would be. Last year, McKinney finished with the best NFL coverage rating (52.1) among the Giants safeties and led the unit in interceptions (3) in a team-leading (among the safeties) 614 coverage snaps.
But the other Giants safeties—Jason Pinnock and Dane Belton—were solid as well. Pinnock finished with a team-best five PBUs among the safeties, while Blton, in 165 coverage snaps, had two interceptions (one fewer than McKinney) and zero dropped interceptions to McKinney’s two.
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