Rapoport — no offer yet, but Saquon Barkley and Giants are talking

NFL Network insider Ian Rapoport backtracked Wednesday on his prior assertion that the Giants had placed a prior contract offer to Saquon Barkley back on the table.

“What I meant to say, what I should have said — I misspoke a little bit — is that the two sides have been negotiating, have been discussing.,” Rapoport said. “As far as an offer being on the table it did not sound like quite yet, so that was maybe a little premature, but they are discussing, they are back in communication with Saquon Barkley.

“I think the stance from the Giants has been very clear. This is a guy they want to be a member of their team for a very long time. Saquon’s stance has been the same. There is room there for a deal.”

Saquon Barkley and the New York Giants might have taken a small step toward reaching a long-term contract with the news on Tuesday that the contract the Giants pulled after placing the franchise tag on the star running back is “back on the table.”

“They do have time to get a deal done. The two sides have had conversations,” said NFL Network insider Ian Rapoport. “The fact that they have had conversations and are talking is good news and a Saquon mentioned [in his remarks on Sunday] there is plenty of time.

“We’ll see if this gets done. I do not have a crystal ball, but at least there is a chance because both sides do seem to want the same thing.”

Barkley has reportedly turned down offers from the Giants reported to be worth $12 million or more annually. On Sunday, Barkley termed as “misleading” the reported values of the contracts he turned down.

“I think they’re open to talking. I think I’m open to talking,” Barkley said on Sunday. “But I think at the end of the day when you really break it down and look at it as a whole it’s no rush. There’s no rush, we still have time on the table. July 17th is not tomorrow, it’s not in a week. That’s how I look at it.”

Barkley was also clear Sunday that he doesn’t want to play elsewhere.

“I’ve been open about it, I said I want to be a Giant for life,” he said. “This is where I want to be. At the end of the day, it’s all about respect.”