“I'll have a tough time sleeping if Saquon goes to Philadelphia, I'll tell you that."
Those were the words Giants owner John Mara told general manager Joe Schoen on Hard Knocks this past offseason.
Well, he’s certainly having nightmares tonight after Saquon Barkley authored one of the greatest revenge games of all time on Sunday. The ex-Giant carried the ball 17 times for 176 yards, the second-most rushing yards against a former team in NFL history. Barkley also found the end zone to open the scoring in the Eagles’ eventual 28-3 victory. He chipped in with two catches for another 11 yards for 187 total yards…which is more than the entire Giants offense (119).
Oh, and he did all that while sitting out the entire fourth quarter.
In the process, Barkley obliterated his popular prop market. The running back was the most bet player at BetMGM to find the end zone (-160) and cashed the anytime TD on a three-yard run midway through the second quarter.
Barkley set the score up with a 55-yard run up the left sideline that cashed the longest run prop set at 17.5. Meanwhile, the over/under on Barkley’s rushing yards was 80.5, meaning he eclipsed that number by nearly a century mark. His combined rushing and receiving yard total was set at 98.5, which he obliterated by 89 yards.
Those who felt frisky about Barkley’s chances to have a big day and played the escalator markets cleaned up, too. For instance, those who took him to go over 175 yards on the ground hit it big at +1700.
New York didn’t give Barkley the type of long-term deal he sought over the past few years, a situation that was further illuminated on Hard Knocks. He spurned Big Blue in free agency by joining the rival Eagles and, in his first opportunity, made sure to show his former team why he believes they made a massive mistake.
Barkley was booed lustily throughout the game, which he told the media was “a compliment at the end of the day.” In general, while Barkley could have unloaded on New York during his postgame press conference, he instead struck a cordial tone.
“So happy this game’s over,” he said. “I don’t think I should get, besides today, any more questions about the Giants. Thankful for the organization, they’re the team that drafted me. Still got nothing but love and respect for the guys over there. I’m happy to be an Eagle.”
