Saquon Barkley appears set to hit free agency for the first time after getting franchise tagged by the New York Giants. While Barkley isn’t likely to get tagged again by New York due to a 120% raise in the previous year’s salary ($10.091 cap number), there’s still the opportunity he could return to the Giants.
Of course free agency provides other options for Barkley, who might be giving a hint where he wants to play in 2024. On Barkley’s Instagram page, the two-time Pro Bowl running back followed four Houston Texans players — Brevin Jordan, Tank Dell, C.J. Stroud and Nico Collins. Notice all those Texans players are on offense, the side of the ball Barkley plays on?
With Devin Singletary heading into free agency as well this offseason, Houston could use a running back to pair with Dameon Pierce, and Barkley could be in line to get the bulk of the carries with the Texans as the featured back.
The Texans won’t be short on money to pay Barkley either, as they have $54,169,290 in available cap space to improve the roster. There’s certainly money to be spent on a player of Barkley’s caliber.
Barkley is coming off a season which he was the best player on a poor offense, rushing for 962 yards and six touchdowns (3.9 yards per carry) behind the worst offensive line in the NFL. He finished with 1,242 yards from scrimmage in 2023, down from the 1,650 the year prior (played just 14 games compared to 16 in 2022).
A fresh start may be what Barkley needs heading into his seventh season. Houston is one of those teams that could provide that opportunity.
