BIOGRAPHY
Saquon Barkley was born February 9, 1997, in Bronx, New York. He is a running back in the National Football League.
He grew up a New York Jets fan idolizing running back Curtis Martin. Athleticism ran in the Barkley family. Barkley’s father, Alibay, was a talented boxer, his brother, Alibay Jr., was a star baseball player at George Washington High School in New York City who went on to get drafted by the Los Angeles Angels, and his uncle, Iran Barkley, was a professional boxer. Barkley and his family moved to Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, in search of a safer and more suburban environment in his youth. Barkley attended Whitehall High School in Whitehall Township, Pennsylvania, which competes in the Eastern Pennsylvania Conference.
He totaled 5,557 all-purpose yards in his three-year collegiate career at Penn State University. Barkley received national attention and finished fourth in Heisman Trophy voting with 304 total votes and third in Maxwell Award voting. He also received multiple national and Big Ten Conference awards and recognition. During Barkley’s three-year collegiate career, he broke and set numerous Penn State records including most rushing touchdowns in a career, most rushing yards by a freshman and sophomore as well as most total yards in a single game. Barkley was drafted with the second overall pick by the Giants in the 2018 NFL Draft.
As a rookie during the 2018 NFL season, Barkley set numerous league and franchise records while on his way to a 1,300+ yard rushing season and a Pro Bowl nod. In 2018, Barkley set multiple league records, tying Randy Moss for most 50+ yard touchdowns from scrimmage in a season, along with recording the most receptions (91) by a rookie running back. Barkley also set three franchise records for rookies: most rushing touchdowns (11), most rushing yards (1,307), and most total touchdowns (15). Barkley was also awarded AP NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year, and was named to the first team PFWA All-Rookie Team.
After a successful rookie campaign, Barkley was ranked No. 16 on the NFL Top 100 Players of 2019. Barkley was chosen by his teammates as one of the seven team captains for the 2019 season, an honor rarely bestowed on players after only one year on the team. In Week 1 against the Dallas Cowboys, Barkley rushed 11 times for 120 yards, including a 59-yard run, in the 35-17 loss. In this game, he fumbled the ball for the first time in his NFL career. In Week 2 against the Buffalo Bills, Barkley rushed 18 times for 107 yards and a touchdown, and also caught three passes for 28 yards in the 28-14 loss. In Week 3 against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Barkley suffered a high ankle sprain and was expected to miss four to eight weeks. Barkley made his return from injury in Week 7 against the Arizona Cardinals. In the game, Barkley rushed 18 times for 72 yards and a touchdown in the 27-21 loss. In Week 8 against the Detroit Lions, Barkley rushed a season-high 19 times for 64 yards and caught a season-high eight passes for 79 yards and a touchdown in the 31-26 loss. In Week 15 against the Miami Dolphins, Barkley rushed 24 times for 112 yards and two touchdowns and caught four passes for 31 yards in the 36-20 win. In Week 16, Barkley rushed for a career-high 189 yards on 22 carries and caught four passes for 90 yards and two total touchdowns in a 41-35 win over the Washington Redskins. He won the NFC Offensive Player of the Week award for his performance in Week 16. In Week 17 against the Philadelphia Eagles, Barkley rushed 17 times for 92 yards, including a season-long 68-yard run which resulted in a touchdown, during the 34-17 loss. Barkley finished his sophomore campaign as the only running back in Giants’ history to have 1,000 rushing yards in their first two seasons.
In Week 1 against the Pittsburgh Steelers on Monday Night Football, Barkley rushed 15 times for six rushing yards and caught six passes for 60 receiving yards during the 26-16 loss. Barkley’s 0.4 yards per attempt was a career-low. During the following week’s 17-13 loss to the Chicago Bears, Barkley was carted off the field after suffering a knee injury and was later confirmed to have a torn ACL the next day, ending his season. He was placed on injured reserve on September 22, 2020.
On April 28, 2021, the Giants picked up the fifth-year option on Barkley’s contract.
