Saquon Barkley officially became a member of the Philadelphia Eagles on Thursday after agreeing to a three-year deal with the club earlier in the week, but he regrets how he handled things with New York Giants fans on his way out.
Barkley announced his departure from the Giants by posting two eagle emojis on his X account and has not posted any sort of goodbye message to New York.
During his introductory press conference, Barkley spoke about his exit.
“The Giants fans that were hurt by me leaving, I got nothing but love and respect for all those guys and all those ladies,” Barkley said, via Ryan Dunleavy of The New York Post. “For the last six years, they’ve been great to me and my family, created so many memories.”
Barkley is of course heading to the Giants’ biggest rivals in the Eagles, so that itself was bad enough. But the fact that he did not offer any type of formal goodbye further rubbed some of the Big Blue faithful the wrong way, and for that, the star running back is apologetic.
“I don’t think I really handled it the right way on social media,” said Barkley. “I think I could’ve gave a proper goodbye. Once I announced, things kind of got hectic. I’m forever grateful for Giants fans, but unfortunately the NFL is a business. I was fortunate to come to a place I know I can compete and I can win and I can stay close to home.”
Barkley was originally selected by the Giants with the second overall pick of the 2018 NFL Draft. He made two trips to the Pro Bowl in New York, most recently doing so in 2022 after racking up 1,312 yards and 10 touchdowns while averaging 4.4 yards per carry.
The 27-year-old then played out the 2023 campaign on a franchise tag and was unable to reach a long-term deal with the Giants.
Now, New York will get to see Saquon Barkley twice a year on the other side.
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