Star running back signed with Green Bay during free agency
[UPDATE: Dan Pompei of The Athletic has corrected his reporting on this one.]
Okay so since this came out, a league source tells me the Giants never made an offer to Jacobs. Apologies for the spikes in blood pressures. And please permit Joe Schoen to see another sunrise. https://t.co/QVc7ACgOon
— Dan Pompei (@danpompei) September 1, 2024
Josh Jacobs may have just shattered the idea that New York Giants general manager Joe Schoen is unwilling to pay big money to a running back.
In an article in The Athletic detailing why Jacobs went from the Las Vegas Raiders to the Green Bay Packers in free agency this offseason of an four-year, $48 million contract with $12.5 million fully guaranteed, Jacobs revealed that it was actually the Giants who offered him the money.
The Athletic’s Dan Pompei writes:
The Giants came on strong with an offer between $3 million and $4 million more than he eventually accepted. But Jacobs was turned off by the New York taxes, lifestyle, media and the artificial turf at MetLife Stadium.
The Giants, of course, wouldn’t go anywhere near matching the three-year, $37.75 million contract with $26.5 million guaranteed that former Giants star Saquon Barkley signed with the Philadelphia Eagles.
Pompei does not make clear whether the Giants were willing to exceed the $48 million total of Jacobs’ deal, or the $12.5 million guarantee. Best guess is the reference is to guaranteed money, because even $16 million guaranteed is far less than Barkley received or had been asking for.
Still, it feels like a stunning revelation that the Giants were apparently willing to give a big-money, long-term deal to the 26-year-old Jacobs when they weren’t willing to do so for the 27-year-old Barkley.
The Giants, of course, signed veteran Devin Singletary to a two-year, $16.5 million contract with $9.5 million guaranteed.
