NEW ORLEANS — Dave Gettleman was watching at his winter home in New Jersey on Nov. 3 when Saquon Barkley caught a pass from Jalen Hurts, juked one defender, spun around another defender and then did the unexpected: a split-leg, backward leap over Jaguars cornerback Jarrian Jones.
That vault on the stat sheet went down as a 14-yard gain. That highlight is a top contender for offensive play of the year in the NFL and added to Barkley’s burgeoning stardom.
“I will say this, I certainly didn’t expect him to turn around and leap over a guy,’’ Gettleman told The Post on Wednesday. “I was watching the game live and I was like ‘You got to be s–ting me.’ ’’
It is a nod to how magnificent a season Barkley fashioned in his first year with the Eagles that he was actually able to stun Gettleman, the man who brought Barkley to the Giants amid uncommon and — some would say — over the top fanfare.
It was Gettleman in the 2018 NFL Draft who decided to go unconventional and take a running back out of Penn State with the No. 2 overall pick.It was Gettleman — the Giants general manager at the time — who one month before that selection said, “We really have to picture this guy putting on a gold jacket,’’ meaning if the choice was Barkley, the expectation was for him to one day make the Hall of Fame.
And it was Gettleman who on the night Barkley became a member of the Giants proclaimed, “He was touched by the hand of God, frankly,’’ and added, “I haven’t seen a guy like this in a long time, and I’ve been running around doing this for 30-plus years. He is the unanimous best player in the draft.’’
Gettleman’s rhetoric could have been characterized as overheated hyperbole during too much of Barkley’s six years with the Giants, as injuries, horrid offensive line play, lousy quarterback play and three head coach regimes all conspired against him. Forget about the hand of God; he was too often touched by the hands of defensive linemen.
All that praise from Gettleman was recounted to Barkley as he sat for the frenzy of another Super Bowl 2025 media session. To this day, Barkley is grateful to Gettleman for having such belief in him.
“Yeah, I don’t think it hurt me,’’ Barkley said. “I think it helped instill confidence in me. I think he was alluding to what I believed in and what I already know. I don’t think it was a crazy statement for him to say. If you go back and watch my film in college and watch the things I was able to do, I don’t know how a lot of people didn’t see that.
“Unfortunately, life doesn’t work like that. Just because you’re blessed with God-given ability and you work super hard it’s not just going to be a straight road. I’ve been super thankful to him and yes, we continue to talk and text, especially a little more this year than we have in the past. I always have love for him. He’s the guy that gave me an opportunity and drafted me to New York. It’s unfortunate that things didn’t go the way that we would like but one of my goals was to make everyone proud and hopefully I’m making him proud right now.’’
Barkley can rest easy with that one.
He has lived up to Gettleman’s vision of greatness, but it took a move to the Eagles to make it happen, with 2,005 rushing yards and an NFL-record three rushing touchdowns in the playoffs of 60 or more yards. The Giants could never build an offensive line for Barkley to allow him to soar so high.
“When a running back can get to the line of scrimmage clean, nobody’s at his feet, the great ones can do great things,’’ Gettleman said. “There’s nothing his game lacks in terms of ability. The thing people didn’t understand when I took him is that he’s a threat to go the distance any time the ball is in his hands.
“When a running back is a legitimate touchdown waiting to happen, f–k the analytics. You’re in the press box, the ball goes into Saquon’s hands, the whole place is holding their breath as soon as there’s a little seam they’re all thinking, ‘Oh s–t, he’s gonna go!’ Does this shock me? No. And I know I sound like an asshole when I say these things. No, it doesn’t shock me.’’
Gettleman congratulated Barkley with a text after the Eagles won the NFC Championship game and plans on sending him “a little love text’’ before Barkley faces the Chiefs.
“He’s just a great young man,’’ Gettleman said. “It’s a great situation for him. He’s in the right place and I’m thrilled for him and I’m proud of him.’’
