Giants should regret letting Saquon Barkley go after lighting it up against them, ex-NFL star says

The New York Giants got quite the look at what they decided to let go of this offseason.

Saquon Barkley, now a Philadelphia Eagle, rushed for 176 yards against his former team this past weekend. It was the second-best mark of his entire career.

The Giants seemed pretty adamant that they were not overpaying for a running back, but Victor Cruz says the Giants "should be" regretting that move.

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Philadelphia Eagles running back Saquon Barkley, #26, reacts after carrying the ball down inside the New York Giants' 5-yard line during the second quarter of an NFL football game on Sunday, Oct. 20, 2024 in East Rutherford, New Jersey. (AP Photo/Frank Franklin II)

"I think Sunday, that was a prime example of a guy that can singlehandedly win games for you," Cruz said in a recent interview with Fox News Digital.

Barkley said he was not considering this a revenge game as he went against the team with which he spent his first six seasons in the NFL before signing with what used to be his NFC East rival.

Cruz is calling B.S.

"If I know Saquon, he was chomping at the bit to play the Giants for the first time and really show them what type of player he is, what type of athlete he is, what we’re missing out on," Cruz said.

However, there was one aspect about Barkley that Cruz said the Giants might miss the most.

Philadelphia Eagles running back Saquon Barkley, #26, warms up before the game against the New York Giants at MetLife Stadium. (Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images)

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Head coach Nick Sirianni approached Barkley on the bench late in the game, informing him that he was 14 yards away from setting a new career-high, and it was up to Barkley if he wanted to stay in.

Barkley declined, telling his coach to "let the young guys eat."

"That’s just the type of guy that was in our locker room, the type of guy that led our franchise for a number of years. The Eagles should be fortunate and lucky they got a guy like that on their roster, not only as a player, but for who he is as a person in that room to represent their team."

Giants owner John Mara said he would have a hard time sleeping if Barkley, the player his team took out of Penn State with the No. 2 overall pick in 2018, went to the Eagles. 

Philadelphia Eagles running back Saquon Barkley, #26, is pushed out of bounds by New York Giants safety Jason Pinnock, #27, during the first half at MetLife Stadium. (Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images)

After what Barkley produced in this game, it is easy to see why he had that thought process.

Fox News' Scott Thompson contributed to this report.

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