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Should the Giants draft Saquon Barkley with the.doc

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Penn State running back Saquon Barkley can leap tall defenders in a single bound. He can squat a school bus. He does everything right off the field.

Barkley is an intoxicating prospect, and it's easy for Giants fans during this nightmare season to dream about him teaming up with wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. to produce an unstoppable offense. But the Giants should pass on the immensely talented running back if they wind up with one of the top picks in next year's draft.

The reason is simple and it has nothing to do with Barkley's potential. He's one of the most complete backs to come out of college football in recent memory and it would be shocking if he's not an excellent pro. But one glance at the NFL's most productive running backs this season makes the point abundantly clear that using a premium pick on the position is a wasteful investment.

I've bought into the Saquon Barkley hype, but looking at this makes it tougher to justify using a top 3 pick on him pic.twitter.com/0wiXCGI2ED
-- Dan Duggan (@DDuggan21) November 8, 2017

There are 28 running backs averaging 4.0 yards per carry or more. Six of those 28 players were picked in the first round (none of the top 11 rushers). Three were undrafted free agents, including two of the top 11.

The overwhelming majority of the top running backs this season were mid-round picks. The average draft position of the top 28 backs is 97.3, which is the very end of the third round (undrafted free agents counted as the 253rd pick).

This isn't a one-year aberration, either. The leaderboard in yards per carry is filled annually with backs who weren't top picks.

It's mostly been overlooked this season that the Giants' Orleans Darkwa, who went undrafted out of Tulane in 2014, ranks fifth in the NFL with a 5.1 yards per carry average.
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The Giants have used early picks on accessories recently, taking Beckham (No. 12 in 2014), wide receiver Sterling Shepard (No. 40 in 2016) and tight end Evan Engram (No. 23 in 2017). Meanwhile, the engine of the offense, the line, has been in dire need of an upgrade.

The Giants are reportedly scouting top quarterbacks, which is a no-brainer for a team in the running for the No. 1 pick. But if the Giants don't draft Eli Manning's successor, they need to address the offensive line and resist the temptation to add another shiny toy.

It would be difficult for Giants fans to watch Barkley's inevitable highlight-reel touchdowns in the years to come. But there's plenty of evidence that quality running backs can be found later in the draft. Top offensive linemen are much harder to come by, as the Giants have proved in recent years.
Dan Duggab may be reached at dduggan@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @DDuggan21. Find our Giants coverage on Facebook.

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Why the Giants shouldn't draft Penn State RB Saquon Barkley with a top pick

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Penn State running back Saquon Barkley can leap tall defenders in a single bound. He can squat a school bus. He does everything right off the field. Barkley is an intoxicating prospect, and it's easy for Giants fans during this nightmare season to dream about him teaming up with wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr.

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Penn State running back Saquon Barkley is the most talented player in this year's draft and could take the New York Giants offense to the next level.

In today's NFL, the running back position is devalued tremendously. The media and fans admire the Aaron Rodgers and Tom Bradys of the world. But some facts about this year's playoff teams provide reason why the New York Giants need to draft running back sensation Saquon Barkley.

Looking at the 2017 playoff teams, it shows a prime reason the New York Giants cannot pass on drafting an all-world talent like Saquon Barkley. In this year's playoffs, of the 12 teams that qualified for the postseason, nine of the top 10 teams in rushing yards made the tournament. On top of that, 11 of the top 15 teams in rushing yards are in the playoffs.

Along with that, seven teams in the playoffs were in the top 10 in rushing touchdowns, and 11 out of the top 15 teams in rushing attempts are in the playoffs. What does this mean?

Running the football gets overlooked. Teams nowadays love to air it out and throw the ball around the field. But without the establishment of a running attack, you become one dimensional.

In particular, look at a team like Jacksonville. Taking the pressure off of struggling Blake Bortles, the Jaguars selected Leonard Fournette with the fourth overall pick in this past year's NFL Draft. The Jaguars went from 22nd in the NFL in rushing yards in 2016 to first in the NFL in 2017. Also in that time frame, the Jaguars (with the help of their defense) went from 3-13 and last in their division to 10-6 and AFC South champions.

As many Giants' fans know from the 2007 and 2011 teams, the key to winning a Super Bowl is defense and a solid rushing attack. The tandem of Brandon Jacobs and Ahmad Bradshaw combined for two Super Bowls. They weren't elite running backs but they balanced out the Giants offense enough for them to not become one dimensional.

In the past 10 years, 26 quarterbacks have been selected in the first round of the draft. Nine of the 26 started all 16 games for their respective teams in 2017. And only five of those nine made the playoffs this year.

The trend of drafting a running back in the first round lately has paid teams major dividends. Players like Todd Gurley, Ezekiel Elliott, Melvin Gordon, Christian McCaffrey, and the aforementioned Leonard Fournette have helped turn their respective franchises around.

Saquon Barkley is a generational talent. Many scouts and executives have compared him to some of the recent first-round draft picks who are taking over the league at running back.

Sports Illustrated's Albert Breer sees Barkley as the future of the NFL.

"You can build an offense around him," said one AFC exec of Barkley. "He's so f-ing good. Zeke is solid in all areas. Fournette is a special athlete for the position. This kid? He's way better than both of them . . . He's a step above Zeke in all categories, and has much better hands and feet and vision than Fournette does. He's special. I haven't seen a better college football player."

Since 2013, the Giants haven't had a rushing attack better than 24th in the league. A stable bell cow type of back has not been on the New York Giants roster since the days of Tiki Barber.

Many are saying the New York Giants need to draft Eli Manning's replacement. There are a couple highly rated talents in the draft at the quarterback position this year. Josh Rosen and Sam Darnold are perceived to be the top two quarterbacks available. But neither has the off-the-charts, game-changing ability that Barkley can have right away in the NFL. It's not that these two quarterbacks can't get to the elite level in the NFL, but Barkley has a great chance of getting there rather quickly.

New general manager Dave Gettleman has some work to do with this offensive line. But if he upgrades the line and adds Barkley to proven playmakers on the New York Giants such as Odell Beckham Jr., Sterling Shepard, and Evan Engram, any quarterback can feel comfortable. As for opposing defenses? Uh oh. Good luck. Who are you going to take away?

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New York Giants: Why Big Blue needs to draft Saquon Barkley

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In today's NFL, the running back position is devalued tremendously. The media and fans admire the Aaron Rodgers and Tom Bradys of the world. But some facts about this year's playoff teams provide reason why the New York Giants need to draft running back sensation Saquon Barkley.

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Should the Giants select prized RB Saquon Barkley instead of choosing a QB with the No. 2 overall pick in the upcoming NFL Draft?

"This kid is something special," Jon Hein said on Loud Mouths on SNY on Tuesday night. "I'm talking Barry Sanders-special."

Barkley had 217 carries for 1,271 yards (5.9 YPC), while reeling in 54 catches for 632 yards this season for Penn State. He had 21 touchdowns.

It's been widely expected that the Giants will select a QB from the group of Josh Rosen (UCLA), Sam Darnold (USC), and Josh Allen (Wyoming) with the No. 2 pick.

In the Sporting News' first Mock Draft of 2018, they had Darnold staying in school, with the Giants tabbing Rosen.

However, new Giants GM Dave Gettleman suggested on Tuesday that the film he watches of Eli Manning's 2017 season will determine whether the team drafts a quarterback.

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Should the Giants draft Saquon Barkley instead of a QB?

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Should the Giants select prized RB Saquon Barkley instead of choosing a QB with the No. 2 overall pick in the upcoming NFL Draft? "This kid is something special," Jon Hein said on Loud Mouths on SNY on Tuesday night. "I'm talking Barry Sanders-special."