Saquon Barkley talks Jets being more hyped than Giants this summer

New York Giants star running back Saquon Barkley is just fine with the New York Jets hogging the spotlight this summer after Gang Green landed quarterback Aaron Rodgers earlier this year. 

"That’s not what really matters," Barkley recently told Paul Schwartz of the New York Post. "What matters is going out there and winning football games. I was a Jets fan growing up so I can see why there’s a lot of buzz going on, having a guy like Aaron Rodgers, the caliber of player that he is, the type of talent he is. They got a good thing going over there. It’s gonna be fun when we get to play 'em in October." 

Former Giants wide receiver Victor Cruz noted last week that the organization enjoys "the fact that the Jets are getting a lot of that coverage" after they acquired Rodgers from the Green Bay Packers in April. Jets players such as running back Dalvin Cook have publicly discussed embracing a "Super Bowl or bust" mentality, and OddsChecker had the Jets tied for fourth among the betting favorites at +1100 odds to represent the AFC in Super Bowl LVIII as of Tuesday afternoon. 

At that same time, OddsChecker listed the Giants eighth among the betting favorites at +2800 odds to win this season's NFC Championship Game. 

The Giants "host" the Jets in Week 8 on Oct. 29. 

"Whether you’re hyped as a team or you get no love and no one expects you to be in the playoffs, like we were last year, the only thing that matters is coming to work every single day, believing in the system, having that trust that we have in each other as players, as teammates, as brothers and if we continue to have that mindset it doesn’t matter what everyone says or the hype they don’t bring to us or the hype they bring to us if we go out there and take care of business," Barkley added. 

For a piece published on August 25, Steve Politi of NJ Advance Media for NJ.com wrote that the Giants did "not care about the Jets" as of the closing days of training camp. That will change by the final Sunday of October when both teams ideally will take the field with more than just bragging rights on the line.