Saquon Barkley: “The great ones figure it out”

Saquon Barkley doesn’t want to hear your excuses. He knows what his statistics are, and what the New York Giants record is. He’s tired, though, of hearing about how the Week 3 high ankle sprain he suffered is seemingly still affecting him.

He said on Wednesday that his 22-yard run late in Sunday’s game against the Chicago Bears should tell you what you need to know.

“Did I look hurt? I know that’s what you’re going towards. Did I look hurt? No. So, let’s stop making excuses that I’m hurt. I’m not hurt. Let’s stop making excuses that I’m not 100 percent. No one is 100 percent,” he said.

Here is that run:

Barkley is averaging 3.9 yards per carry and 57.6 yards rushing per game after averaging 5.0 and 81.4 a year ago. He has not had a 100-yard rushing game since Week 2. His health, play-calling, blocking and lack of proper audibles have all been bandied about as possible reasons.

“I could pull up multiple clips, multiple clips, where you can look back and you can see I’m doing the same thing that I did in college or I did in my first year. This season is not going the way I would like it,” Barkley said. “No, I’m not going to point blame on anyone else, you have to point the fingers at yourself first. You got to be better, I got to be better. I’m going to keep working. I wrote in my notes today, ‘The great ones figure it out.’ I want to be great and I’m going to figure it out.”

Despite the team’s 2-9 record, Barkley sounded an optimistic note.

“I still think we believe we are building on something. We know that you are what your record says you are, as the great Bill Parcells would say, he’s exactly right,” Barkley said. “We understand that we have been in a lot of tough, close games this year. We have been inconsistent all around, in all phases of the game. We are not as far as everyone thinks, that’s the belief we have in this locker room.

“I think that’s where it needs to start, you have to believe in it first. If we continue to believe in it and continue believing in each other, which I think we are doing a great job, those losses will turn into wins. It’s not happening for us right now, but you have to persevere and keep doing it.”