Saquon Barkley Injury Updates | Shark Bites

The Giants used the franchise tag to keep Saquon Barkley on the 2023 roster but never worked out a longer-term pact. ESPN's Jordan Raanan reports that the team won't do so in 2024 and that "it seems like this is headed for Barkley to hit free agency." That would be the first trip into the open market for the six-year veteran, who turns 27 this week. Barkley has rebounded after losing 20 games to injury from 2019 through 2021. He has missed just four total contests over the past two years despite posting his two largest carries-per-game rates (18.4 and 17.6). Barkley's 2.91 yards after contact per carry in 2023 also was his best mark since 2019. The guy can still play and should be a good fit in any system because of his versatile skill set. Barkley sits inside Round 2 in both Underdog and FFPC ADP so far. You might be able to get him at a nice discount in dynasty, however, where managers often over-emphasize youth.

Giants RB Saquon Barkley struggled in Week 17, posting 58 scrimmage yards on 15 touches against the Rams. This performance is emblematic of the rough go the veteran had in 2023. Barkley missed four games due to an ankle injury and was only able to be healthy to play in three games with QB Daniel Jones (torn ACL in Week 9). Still, he averaged 88.1 scrimmage yards per game this season, a slight downtick from 103.1 in 2022. Barkley also totaled an average of 20.6 touches per game across 13 contests and showed his ability to maintain a sizeable workload. He’ll enter 2024 as a 27-year-old free agent and likely be able to hold low-end RB1/high-end RB2 dynasty value for the next couple of seasons.

RB Saquon Barkley essentially served as the Giants’ entire offense in Week 8 vs. the Jets, totaling 36 carries for 128 rushing yards with 3 catches. The team had to pivot early on after starting QB Tyrod Taylor (ribs) and TE Darren Waller (hamstring) left in the second quarter due to injury and settled on pounding the rock all the way through OT. It’s difficult to draw any meaningful fantasy-based conclusions from this game due to the dire circumstances. Keep an eye on the practice reports this coming week to see who’ll be available to suit up vs. the Raiders in Week 9.

Giants RB Saquon Barkley (elbow) is not listed on the final Week 8 injury report. He hyperextended his elbow last week but returned to that game and will be ready for a full workload vs. the Jets on Sunday.

Giants RB Saquon Barkley sustained a hyperextended left elbow in Sunday’s win over Washington. Trainers put a sleeve on Barkley’s elbow, and he was able to play through the injury. "I'll be all right," Barkley said after the loss. We’ll keep an eye on his practice participation, but Barkley should be fine for Week 8.

Giants RB Saquon Barkley finished with 24 carries for 93 rushing yards in Week 6 vs. the Bills. He also added 4 catches on 5 targets for as many yards in the receiving game on Sunday night. It wasn’t a particularly efficient outing, as the Giants continue to have offensive struggles, but fantasy managers should feel happy with 13.8 PPR points in Barkley’s first game back since suffering an ankle injury in Week 2. Next week, Barkley will go up against a Commanders run defense that was fairly good at neutralizing the efforts of rookie RB Bijan Robinson in Week 6, but a player of Barkley’s caliber should still be thought of as a solid lineup choice.

Giants RB Saquon Barkley (ankle) is active for tonight’s game vs. the Bills. He’s four weeks removed from his high-ankle sprain and probably isn’t at 100% just yet. Throw in an injury-wrecked Giants offensive line, and Barkley does not carry his usual RB1 projection this week.

Giants RB Saquon Barkley (ankle) remained limited in Thursday's practice. "I feel like I'm trending every week," Barkley said. "Feel better this Wednesday and Thursday than last Wednesday and Thursday. ... Take it day-by-day." We'll see what Barkley does on Friday and how he's listed on the final injury report for Sunday night's game vs. the Bills.

Giants RB Saquon Barkley (ankle) remained limited in Thursday's practice. He told reporters afterward that his ankle "is in a better spot than it was last Thursday" but stopped short of saying that he'll play vs. the Dolphins this weekend. "Each day it gets better," Barkley said. "It's a tough injury. Just taking it one day at a time. Trying to improve each day. ... Definitely encouraged but don't want to make guarantees. Just continue trusting my body and trusting the training staff." We'll see what Barkley does in Friday's practice and how he's listed on the final injury report. But fantasy owners should make sure they have a backup plan in place for Week 5. Barkley seems no better than 50/50 to play against Miami.

Giants RB Saquon Barkley (ankle) remained limited in Friday's practice. HC Brian Daboll said Barkley "did good" on Thursday, per ESPN's Jordan Raanan, so it sounds like that injured ankle has responded well so far. We'll see what Barkley does on Saturday and how he's listed on the final injury report for Monday night's game vs. the Seahawks.

Giants HC Brian Daboll labeled RB Saquon Barkley "day-to-day" with his ankle injury. "He feels a lot better today, but we’ll kinda take that all the way throughout the week and see how he improves,” Daboll said. Barkley has an extra day to get ready for New York's Monday night game vs. the Seahawks, but we'd still consider him no better than 50/50 for that one after Barkley revealed last week that he's dealing with a high-ankle sprain.

Giants RB Saquon Barkley told NFL Network's Taylor Rooks that he's dealing with a high-ankle sprain. Previous reports had it as a low-ankle sprain. Those tend to be less significant than high sprains. Barkley also told Rooks that his injury isn't as severe as it could have been but that he's not sure if he'll be ready for Week 4. High-ankle sprains usually cost guys at least 3-4 weeks, so Barkley owners should prepare to be without him beyond Week 3. We'll continue to track his rehab.

Giants RB Saquon Barkley (ankle) did not practice on Tuesday. HC Brian Daboll said earlier in the day that Barkley still has a chance to play vs. the 49ers on Thursday night, but we're not buying it. We'll see how he's listed on the final injury report tomorrow.

ESPN's Adam Schefter reports that Giants RB Saquon Barkley is expected to miss three weeks with his ankle injury. It's an "ordinary" sprain, rather than a high-ankle sprain, Schefter adds. It's all relatively good news, but fantasy owners will still need to prep to be without Barkley for the short term. Schefter's timeline would have him back for Week 6 vs. the Bills. Barkley's absence leaves the Giants' backfield to Matt Breida, Gary Brightwell, and rookie Eric Gray. Breida is the preferred fantasy add but shouldn't be considered more than a low-upside RB3 or flex.

NFL Network's Ian Rapoport confirms that there's "cautious optimism" that Giants RB Saquon Barkley avoided a major ankle injury. Barkley is scheduled for additional testing on Monday, so we should have a better idea of his status by the end of the day. Fantasy owners shouldn't count on him playing vs. the 49ers on Thursday night, but it's possible that he doesn't miss much time beyond that.

On Sunday night, NFL insider Jordan Schultz tweeted that Giants RB Saquon Barkley is believed to have suffered a sprained ankle vs. the Cardinals. Schultz adds that the injury “could have been much worse,” and Barkley seems to have dodged significant damage. This news is excellent for fantasy managers who feared a prolonged absence for the workhorse back. Still, Week 3's contest vs. the 49ers is set to kick off on Thursday night. It'll be tough for Barkley to work his way back on a short week to play, but he may be available again sooner rather than later. We'll keep fantasy managers in the loop as more information becomes available.

Giants RB Saquon Barkley recorded 17 carries for 63 rushing yards and 6 catches for 29 receiving yards in Week 2 vs. the Cardinals, finding the end zone twice. He appeared to sustain a foot injury late in the fourth quarter of the contest and didn't come back into action. According to a report from Pro Football Talk, he was taken on a medical cart to receive X-rays following the game. It'll be essential to follow along with practice reports in the coming days to get an idea of Barkley's availability for Week 3 vs. the 49ers. Considering their next game is on Thursday, it wouldn't be surprising to see him miss time.