The New York Giants got back to their winning ways on Sunday as they defeated the Houston Texans 24-16 at MetLife Stadium.
New York, who lost to the Seahawks before the bye week, improved to 7-2, their best nine-game record since they were 8-1 in 2008.
The Giants gave the Texans a heavy dose of Saquon Barkley, who finished with a career-high 35 carries for 152 yards, including a two-yard touchdown in the third quarter. Barkley’s 152 rushing yards are his second-highest total of the season. The 35 carries are the most by a Giants back since 1999.
“It’s really fun, to be honest,” Barkley said about the 35 carries after the win. “At the end of the day, like I said, just want to a find a way to win games, and today that was the mindset that we needed to get the job done, and we were able to get it done.”
According to reports, Barkley’s agent and the Giants discussed a new contract during the bye week as he can become an unrestricted free agent at the end of the season.
“We got into a little bit of conversation,’ Barkley said. ‘At the end of the day, I put that in the past. That was the Bye Week. Obviously, we weren’t able to come to an agreement during the bye week, and my mindset is just focus on the rest of the season. Next week going against Detroit and knowing when that opportunity comes up again, focus on it then.”
Despite the two sides not coming together on an agreement, Barkley is happy that both sides were able to discuss a new contract.
“I’m just happy that we were able to at least have a conversation,” he said. “I know how they feel about me. They spoke very highly of me, but like I said, we weren’t able to get anything done during the bye week, and I agree with (general manager) Joe (Schoen), just lock it up and worry for the rest of the season and make sure no distractions come out of it.”
As he said in the past, Barkley wants to be in New York for his whole career.
“I think I’ve kind of been vocal before contracts were even brought up about how I feel about this place,” he said. “What I want my legacy to be in this place, and I want to be Giant for life. Like I said, I’ve been vocal about that, so if the conversation gets brought up again, we’ll go from there.”
After nine games, Barkley leads the NFL in rushing(931 yards) and is second in yards from scrimmage(1148). He is playing like the guy New York saw before the injuries, so whether it’s New York or elsewhere, Barkley will get his money.
