It comes down to him

Why Gettleman’s fate may depend on Barkley’s 2021 season

- Mike Addvensky

It’s been more than three years since Dave Gettleman used the first pick of his tenure as Giants general manager on a star running back out of Penn State. The 2018 draft class was loaded with talent on both sides of the ball, but many experts considered Saquon Barkley to be the most talented overall prospect in the draft. We saw just how good Barkley can be during his explosive rookie year. However, his past two seasons have been hampered by injuries. It would not be a stretch to say this is a make-or-break season for Barkley. With Gettleman however, the situation is slightly more urgent. If the running back he selected second overall does not have a big year, he could be out of a job by the end of 2021.

There’s no denying Barkley is one of the top running backs in the league when he’s healthy. He was one of the most explosive players in college football in 2016 and 2017, scoring over 20 total touchdowns in each of those seasons. This is why it was hard to fault Gettleman for drafting him. Remember, in 2018 we were still unsure of how many years Eli Manning had left. Adding an extremely talented young running back to an offense that already included a two-time Super Bowl-winning quarterback and a Pro Bowl wide receiver sounded like a smart move. With that being said, Gettleman still received plenty of criticism for not taking a quarterback in what many considered to be the best draft for this position in years.