Micah Parsons believes the Giants did not appreciate what they had with Saquon Barkley on their roster.
As the Dallas Cowboys prepare to face the Philadelphia Eagles in Week 10, Micah Parsons is looking forward to facing his former teammate, Saquon Barkley. With Barkley being one of the best players of 2024, Parsons is aware of the challenge his team faces and went in-depth with his thoughts on why the tailback is having a career resurgence.
Parsons ripped Barkley’s former team, the New York Giants, for allowing the 27-year-old to walk in free agency. Parsons called the Giants “stupid” for not re-signing their former No. 2 overall pick on his podcast, “The Edge with Micah Parsons.”
“For Saquon, this is a blessing in disguise,” Parsons said. “People are seeing what you’re capable of when people appreciate you. The Giants did not appreciate him. And now the rest of the league is facing the consequences of the Giants’ stupidity. This is always who he was.”
Parsons and Barkley briefly shared a locker room in college at Penn State. Barkley’s final season with the team in 2017 was Parsons’ first year in College Township.
While watching Barkley succeed in Philadelphia hurts Giants fans, the move made sense long-term from the New York front office. The team did not want to sign an oft-injured running back to a lucrative extension while still dealing with headaches at the quarterback and offensive line positions. Still, that did not stop fans from booing Barkley in his return to MetLife Stadium.
It may take a while for the Giants to adjust, but the team is likely happy where they are at for the time being with rookie running back Tyrone Tracy Jr. The sixth-round pick is averaging 83 rushing yards per game in their last five outings and is on track to have a better year than Barkley had in 2023.
Micah Parsons set to return from injury against Eagles in Week 10
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After being sidelined for the last four games, Micah Parsons is expected to make his return to the field in Week 10 against the Eagles. The star linebacker has been dealing with a high ankle sprain suffered against the aforementioned Giants in Week 4.
However, in exchange for Parsons’ return, the Cowboys will be without quarterback Dak Prescott. The 31-year-old suffered a hamstring injury in their Week 9 loss to the Atlanta Falcons and is expected to be placed on injured reserve after his evaluation.
The struggling Cowboys dropped to 3-5 after the loss to the Falcons, which was their third straight defeat. Their poor record puts them third in the NFC East, only above 2-7 New York in the division. With the way their season is trending, Dallas is on track to miss the playoffs for the first time since 2020.